BENCHMARK CLOSE HIGHER ON IT STRENGTH, MAHARASHTRA POLL TRENDS AID SENTIMENT

Benchmark equity indices closed with modest gains on Friday, ending a two-day losing streak, as buying interest returned to IT stocks following Infosys� better-than-expected quarterly performance and an upgrade to its full-year revenue growth outlook.

Market sentiment also drew support from the ongoing December-quarter earnings season, with investors awaiting the Q3 results of Reliance Industries later in the day. Gains in IT shares, along with select banking stocks, helped the Nifty settle above the 25,650 level.

Adding to the positive tone, early trends from the Maharashtra assembly elections showed the BJP-Shiv Sena alliance in the lead. Markets generally view political stability and continuity in governance as supportive for economic growth and policy direction.

However, the broader upside was capped by weakness in pharma and healthcare stocks, which ended the session lower.

The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 187.64 points or 0.23% to 83,570.35. The Nifty 50 index added 28.75 points or 0.11% to 25,694.35. The 50-unit index fell 0.48% in the past two sessions.

Infosys (up 5.58%), State Bank of India (up 1.19%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.55%) boosted the Nifty higher today.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.15% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index lost 0.45%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,875 shares rose and 2,359 shares fell. A total of 163 shares were unchanged.

The NSE`s India VIX, a gauge of the market`s expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 0.46% to 11.37.

Maharashtra elections result 2026 updates:

In the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections held on 15 January 2026, with counting on 16 January 2026, the BJP-Shiv Sena Mahayuti alliance surged ahead to cross the majority mark in the 227-seat house, leading or securing 110-138 seats based on live trends. This marked a dramatic end to Shiv Sena (UBT)`s 30-year dominance, as UBT along with MNS and NCP(SP) trailed at 58-68 seats, while Congress allies managed 10-31, amid a 52.94% voter turnout from 12.4 million voters across Mumbai`s wards.

Economy:

The India�s exports grew 1.87% to $38.5 billion in December last year due to global economic uncertainties, while an increase in imports led to a marginal widening of the trade deficit to $25 billion. The country`s exports in November 2025 was up by about 20%. Imports rose by 8.7% to $63.55 billion during the month under review, according to government data released on Thursday. Merchandise exports to the United States edged down to $6.89 billion in December from $6.92 billion in November. However, shipments to the U.S. rose 9.75% year-on-year to $65.88 billion in the first nine months of the fiscal year, data showed.

India�s unemployment rate for persons aged 15 years and above remained largely stable in December, estimated at 4.8% compared to 4.7% recorded in November 2025. According to the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation�s monthly labour force and unemployment data, the rural unemployment rate remained stagnant at 3.9%. Among rural males aged 15 years and above, the unemployment rate remained low and stable at 4.1% in December last year. The urban female unemployment rate moderated to 9.1% last month, compared to 9.3% in November 2025. The overall Labour Force Participation Rate among persons aged 15 years and above also showed an upward trend at 56.1% in the last month, compared to 55.8% in November 2025. In rural areas, the Labour Force Participation Rate was estimated as 59% in December 2025, as compared to 58.6% in November last year. The overall Worker Population Ratio for persons of age 15 years and above rose marginally to its yearly peak of 53.4% last month.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper rose 0.57% to 6.685 compared with previous session close of 6.647.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 90.8450 compared with its close of 90.3400 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 February 2026 settlement rose 0.05% to Rs 143,194.

The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.08% to 99.27.

The United States 10-year bond yield added 0.38% to 4.177.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for March 2026 settlement gained 50 cents or 0.78% to $64.26 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Most European traded lower on Friday as investors continued to fret over ongoing geopolitical developments.

Data released earlier on Friday showed that German consumer prices were unchanged in December, rising 1.8% year on year�below the European Central Bank�s 2.0% medium-term target.

Asian market ended mixed as technology shares advanced tracking positive earnings from chipmaking bellwether TSMC, but losses in other sectors limited overall gains.

Shares of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose in trade after the company delivered another record quarter, saying it expects to boost capital spending in 2026 to between $52 billion and $56 billion.

Investors across the region were also watching chip-related stocks after the U.S. reached a trade deal with Taiwan. Under the agreement, Taiwanese semiconductor companies commited to invest at least $250 billion in U.S. production capacity in exchange for lower �reciprocal� tariffs.

Overnight in the U.S., the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.60%, while the S&P 500 rose 0.26% and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.25%.

U.S. bank stocks also advanced after the latest raft of quarterly earnings. Goldman Sachs advanced more than 4% after its fourth-quarter profit topped widely reported earnings estimates.

Morgan Stanley surged nearly 6% after its wealth management unit contributed to top- and bottom-line beats in the fourth quarter.

The rally also came on the back of solid economic data. Jobless claims data for the week ending Jan. 10 came in at 198,000, lower than the 215,000 expected by economists polled by Dow Jones.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Wipro rose 2.73%. The company reported a 3.92% decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,119 crore on a 3.78% jump in revenue from operations to Rs 23,555.8 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q2 FY26. On a year on year (YoY) basis, the company�s consolidated net profit declined 7% while revenue from operations increased 5.54% in Q3 FY26.

Adjusted for impact of labour code changes, net income for the quarter was Rs 3360 crore ($374.3 million), increase of 3.6% QoQ and 0.3% YoY.

In dollar terms, Wipro`s gross revenue for Q3 FY26 stood at $2,622 million, registering a increase of 3.8% QoQ and up 5.5% YoY. IT services segment revenue was at $2,635.4 million in Q3 FY26, marking the growth of 1.2% QoQ and 0.2% YoY. IT services operating margin for Q3 FY26 was 17.6%, expansion of 0.9% QoQ and 0.1% on YoY basis.

Total bookings stood at $3,335 million in Q3 FY26, down 5.7% YoY in constant currency. Large deal bookings stood at $871 million in Q3 FY26, down 8.4% YoY in constant currency.

Looking ahead, the company said that it expects revenue from IT Services business segment to be in the range of $2,635 million to $2,688 million. This translates to sequential guidance of 0% to 2.0% in constant currency terms.

L&T Technology Services tumbled 7.67% after the company reported 0.1% rise in net profit to Rs 329.1 crore as revenue fell by 1.9% to Rs 2923.5 crore in Q3 FY26 as compared with Q2 FY26.

LTIMindtree jumped 4.46% after the company said it had won a large contract from the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to build the next phase of India`s tax analytics system. The company said it has been awarded the "Insight 2.0" project, a seven-year mandate valued at around Rs 3,000 crore, to modernise the national tax analytics platform.

Angel One rallied 9.14% after the company�s consolidated net profit jumped 26.89% to Rs 268.66 crore on 11.08% increase in total revenue from operations to Rs 1334.89 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q2 FY26.

South Indian Bank surged 3.68% after the lender reported its highest-ever quarterly net profit for the December 2025 quarter. Net profit after tax rose 9.5% YoY to Rs 374 crore in Q3 FY25, compared with Rs 342 crore in the year-ago period. Profit before tax stood at Rs 504 crore, up 8.8% YoY. Operating profit increased 10.5% YoY to Rs 584 crore, supported by stable core income and higher other income. Net interest income inched up 1.3% YoY to Rs 881 crore, while other income jumped 18.8% YoY to Rs 486 crore, providing an added boost to profitability.

Fedbank Financial Services fell 9.50%. The company has reported a net profit of Rs 87.9 crore in Q3 FY26, which is significantly higher as compared with the PAT of Rs 18.8 crore in Q3 FY25. Net interest income for the period under review was Rs 318.9 crore, up 16.8% YoY. Net total income in the December 2025 period rose by 11.8% to Rs 347.8 crore from Rs 311.0 crore in the December 2024 period.

Prestige Estates Projects added 1.80% after the company recorded pre-sales of Rs 4,183.6 crore in Q3 FY26, representing a 39% year-on-year growth. Sales volume during the quarter stood at 2.99 million square feet, with the sale of 1,811 units.

Ahluwalia Contracts (India) added 1.17% after the company announced that it has secured an order worth Rs 3,069.70 crore from the Central Vista Project Division-12, Central Public Work Department, New Delhi.

Anand Rathi Share and Stock Brokers rallied 3.35% after the company�s consolidated net profit surged 71.77% to Rs 37 crore on 21.45% increase in total revenue from operations to Rs 248.20 crore in Q3 FY26 over Q3 FY25.

Nelco tanked 4.10% after the company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 1.19 crore in Q3 FY26, compared with a net profit of Rs 4.95 crore in Q3 FY25. Total income declined 4.08% YoY to Rs 78.88 crore in Q3 FY26, from Rs 82.24 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy jumped 5.90% after the company has reported a net profit of Rs 2 crore in Q3 FY26, which is steeply lower as compared with the PAT of Rs 17 crore recorded in Q3 FY25. The company has, however, seen a significant sequential recovery, moving back into the black from a net loss of Rs 478 crore recorded in Q2 FY26. Revenue from operations rose by 13.9% YoY to Rs 2,092 crore during the period under review.

IPO Update:

The initial public offer (IPO) of Amagi Media Labs received bids for 82,39,82,248 shares as against 2,72,66,589 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 17:00 IST on Friday (16 January 2026). The issue was subscribed 30.22 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Tuesday (13 January 2026) and it will close on Friday (16 January 2026). The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 343 and 361 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 41 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

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