India’s equity benchmarks are set to open marginally higher on Friday, with focus on information technology stocks after Tata Consultancy Services, the country’s No. 1 software services firm, posted better-than-expected second-quarter revenue.
Gift Nifty futures were trading at 25,245 points as of 7:49 a.m. IST, indicating that the benchmark Nifty 50 will open above Thursday’s close of 25,181.8.
Nifty 50 has risen in five of the past six sessions, gaining 2.3%, led by about 6% rally in IT stocks.
The sector will remain in focus after TCS beat September-quarter revenue estimates, driven by strength in its banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) segment.
The company said it expects stronger growth in the second half of fiscal 2026.
However, profits missed estimates, weighed down by a surge in severance costs after the company announced plans to cut 2% of its workforce this fiscal year.
While TCS’s results were largely in line, the real catalyst for sentiment was its announcement of a new entity to build world-class artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure, analysts said.
Meanwhile, market sentiment was also boosted by the return of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) to net buying over the past three sessions.
On Thursday, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth 13.08 billion rupees ($147.3 million) on a net basis, per the National Stock Exchange’s provisional data.
Domestic institutional investors have remained net buyers for 32 straight sessions.
While the secondary market showed resilience, the primary market also saw a surge in activity, highlighted by the $1.3 billion maiden share sale by LG Electronics’ Indian unit – the most subscribed billion-dollar IPO in nearly two decades.
STOCKS TO WATCH
** Tata Elxsi’s profit fell for the fourth straight quarter as the company’s transportation business declined amid uncertain markets and geopolitical tensions.
** Mahindra and Mahindra says its total production volume rose 24.4% year-on-year to 99,758 units in September.
** Afcons Infrastructure gets contract worth 5.76 billion rupees.
** NTPC Green Energy signs deal with Gujarat government for solar and wind projects.