Opening Bell: Nifty around15,700, Sensex gains over 400 points; all sectors in green

Taking cues from Asian markets, the Indian market started on a strong note on Friday. The domestic equity benchmarks Nifty50 and Sensex opened higher by around one per cent amid positive global cues on Friday. 

The broader Nifty50 went past 15,600, while the Sensex added over 400 points in the opening trade as the two indices opened at 15,657.40 and 52,654.24 respectively 

Following benchmark indices, Nifty midcap and small cap rose higher by 1% and 1.2% respectively in the opening trade on Friday.  

On the sectoral front, all Nifty indices sat comfortably in the green with banking indices gaining the most. 

In the pre-open, the Sensex gained nearly 400 points as 29 stocks advanced and one declined on the 30-share index.  

"There are some clear economic and market trends. Leading indicators such as PMI and retail sales in Europe and US indicate economic slowdown. Most central banks of the world are hiking rates in this slowdown. Therefore, the slowdown will continue and may aggravate pushing the US economy into recession. Since the market knows this, equities are in oversold territory, triggering short-term upmoves,"said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services. 

He said the whipsaw movement in Nifty yesterday reflects this uncertainty, confusion and lack of direction.  

"Accenture's results indicate continued robust demand for IT. Indian IT companies' Q1 results are likely to be very good, but the stock movements will be decided by their FY23 guidance. A Crash in metal prices is a strong positive for autos," added the expert.  

Earlier, SGX Nifty and other major Asian indices were seen trading higher in the morning trade on Friday.  

Hinting at positive opening for the Indian market, SGX Nifty Futures rose by more than 90 points on the Singaporean Exchange in early trade.  

Besides, Japanese Nikkei 225 gained over 0.7%, Hang Seng Index at the Hong Kong Exchange traded higher by 1.3% and Chinese Shanghai Composite gained over half per cent in the morning trade.  

Earlier, the US markets ended in the green on Thursday. US benchmark indices Dow Jones gained 0.6%, Nasdaq added 1.6% and S&P 500 rose 0.9% on Thursday.