Indian Shares Post Best Week in Six Months as IT Stocks Rally

An end-of-day recap of all that transpired in the Indian markets, highlighting the major price movements and the factors driving them

By Dehuti Jani

October 16, 2026 at 12:54 PM IST

Indian benchmark indices posted their strongest weekly performance in six months on Friday, driven by a sharp rally in information technology stocks following stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings and value-buying amid a global sell-off in AI-linked stocks.

The Nifty50 rose 0.65% to 23,146.15, while the Sensex gained 413.70 points, or 0.56%, to 74,729.27. For the week, the Nifty advanced 2.8% and the Sensex rose 3.1%, their strongest weekly gains since April 10. Investors are now awaiting results from heavyweight companies, including major banks, as well as developments around the Jio Platforms initial public offering.

The Nifty IT index surged 3.9% on Friday, taking its weekly gain to 11.7%, its strongest weekly advance in 18 years. Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys were among the top Nifty 50 gainers. The Nifty Oil and Gas index was the worst-performing sector, while broader market performance was more subdued than the benchmark rally.

The Indian rupee rose 0.1% to 94.96 per US dollar on Friday, taking its weekly gain to 2%, it’s biggest in seven months. The recovery followed policy measures aimed at curbing depreciation pressure after the currency approached its record low of 96.96 last week. However, analysts expect a sustained turnaround to depend on an easing of underlying economic pressures.

Indian government bond yields fell after the 340-billion-rupee government bond auction drew better-than-expected demand. The benchmark 6.94%, 2036 bond yield declined to 7.3789% from Thursday's close of 7.3921%, after touching an intraday low of 7.3650%.

Top Movers of the Day

Tech Mahindra surged 8.48% to close at ₹1,790, emerging as the standout performer of the day. The rally was fuelled by robust second-quarter earnings that beat market expectations, adding significantly to its market valuation.

Wipro jumped 5.95% to ₹184.40, benefiting heavily from a broader sectoral rally. Investors flocked to major IT stocks as sentiment in the software export space turned highly positive.

Infosys advanced 4.61% to ₹1,161.20, continuing the strong momentum in the technology sector. The stock attracted sustained buying interest amid optimism surrounding upcoming IT deal pipelines.

TCS climbed 4.89% to ₹2,465, complementing the broader IT sector rally as domestic and foreign funds sought reliable large-cap technology names.

Bharti Airtel gained 2.75% to ₹1,905, finding robust institutional support and tracking positive momentum in the telecommunications space.

Mahindra & Mahindra rose 2.07% to ₹2,920.90 as the automobile major saw renewed buying interest, pushing the broader Nifty Auto index higher.

BSE dropped 1.90% to ₹3,363.00, making it one of the prominent losers of the session. The exchange operator faced localized profit-booking after a recent strong run in its share price.

Max Healthcare Institute declined 1.40% to ₹846 as investors booked profits following recent gains, leading to stock-specific weakness in the healthcare sector.

Tata Consumer Products slipped 1.27% to ₹978.90, facing mild selling pressure as capital rotated out of defensive consumer staples into high-beta technology stocks.

Nestlé India dropped 0.81% to ₹1,265.50, tracking the widespread correction seen across the fast-moving consumer goods sector.

Hindustan Unilever edged lower by 0.17% to ₹1,893.80, continuing the trend of institutional profit-taking among major FMCG heavyweights during the session.

Futures & Options
The Nifty October 2026 futures closed at 23,113, a discount of 33.15 points to the Nifty 50's cash-market close of 23,146.15. The Nifty 50 rose 148.80 points, or 0.65%, during the session, while the NSE's India VIX, a gauge of expected near-term volatility, edged up 0.35% to 14.08.

HDFC Bank, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services were the most-traded individual stock futures contracts in the NSE's F&O segment. The October 2026 F&O contracts will expire on 27 October 2026.

Bonds
Indian government bond yields fell on Friday after strong demand at the 340-billion-rupee auction prompted short-covering. The benchmark 6.94%, 2036 yield closed at 7.3789%, down from 7.3921% on Thursday, after touching 7.3650%.

The RBI set the 10-year gilt cut-off at 96.91 rupees, a 7.3955% yield, above the 96.88-rupee poll estimate. Broad demand lifted the bond’s outstanding amount to 2.38 trillion rupees.

Traders covered shorts ahead of a possible new 10-year benchmark at the next auction. Special-repo trading totalled 213.76 billion rupees, a proxy for short positions. Gilts later pared gains on weaker overseas cues and pre-weekend caution.

Forex
The Indian rupee rose 2% this week to record its biggest weekly gain in seven months, supported by policy measures aimed at curbing depreciation pressure. The currency closed 0.1% higher at 94.96 per US dollar on Friday, recovering after approaching its record low of 96.96 last week.

The Reserve Bank of India and policymakers have introduced measures to redirect oil companies' dollar demand away from the spot market, raise the cost of hedging against rupee weakness and cut the limit for unhedged dollar purchases without supporting documentation by 95% to $5 million. Traders and analysts expect these steps to ease pressure on the currency in the near to medium term, although a sustained recovery will depend on an improvement in underlying conditions and may still require central bank intervention.

Crypto
The cryptocurrency market remained cautious on Friday, with Bitcoin trading near $83,500 and Ethereum hovering around $2,512 as investors assessed the outlook for US inflation and interest rates. Sentiment was also pressured by risk aversion following the global sell-off in technology and AI-linked stocks.

Bitcoin faces resistance near $84,000, with support around $81,000, while Ethereum faces resistance near $2,580 as buyers defend the 2,400-2,440 support zone. Weaker institutional spot ETF demand and rising exchange reserves continued to weigh on Ethereum, leaving both major tokens sensitive to macroeconomic developments.

US Stock Futures
US stock futures traded slightly higher on Friday after Wall Street gained in the previous session as technology shares recovered from selling pressure linked to concerns over AI investment and corporate borrowing. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 75 points, or 0.1%, while S&P 500 futures gained 0.1%. Nasdaq-100 futures were broadly unchanged.

Investors assessed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh, who declined to signal the likely outcome of the central bank’s October interest-rate meeting while acknowledging inflationary pressures. Markets remained cautious amid uncertainty over the interest-rate outlook and the sustainability of AI-related investment.

US Treasury Notes
US Treasury yields stabilised on Friday after falling in the previous session as investors sought safe-haven assets amid a sell-off in AI-linked technology stocks. The 10-year Treasury yield held near 5.09%, while the 30-year yield remained around 5.43%.

The pause in yields offered some relief to regional equity markets, which staged a modest rebound after Thursday's sharp losses. However, sentiment remained cautious as investors assessed the impact of sustained high borrowing costs and the outlook for further Federal Reserve monetary tightening.

Top News

Printing is Disabled

Indian Shares Post Best Week in Six Months as IT Stocks Rally