FINAL TRADE: Nifty settles 3 pts shy of 21,650, Sensex up 63 pts; oil & gas stocks gain

Stock market today: The equity market ended in green for the third straight session on Thursday, January 11, amid buying in oil & gas and auto stocks. The Nifty50 ended 28.5 points, or 0.13 per cent, higher at 21,647.2, and the Sensex settled at 71,721.18, up 63.47 points, or 0.09 per cent.

The high-beta Nifty Bank index, whose 12 constituents include SBI, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank, finished the day 77.5 points, or 0.16 per cent, higher at 47,438.35. Nifty IT closed at 34,735.25, down 99.1 points, or 0.28 per cent, ahead of the much-awaited Q3 results of TCS and Infosys. The IT firms are due to report quarterly results today, kicking off the earnings season in earnest.

IT companies were in focus in the trade ahead of their Q3 results, which are set to be released after market hours. The results are expected to be subdued amid weak spending by key US clients. US inflation data is due later in the day.

Nifty MidCap 100 and Nifty SmallCap 100 settled in green with gains of 0.49 and 0.58 per cent, respectively. 

Hero MotoCorp, Baja Auto, RIL and BPCL were among the top gainers in the Nifty basket, trading with gains of around 5-2 per cent. On the other hand, HUL, Dr Reddy's, SBI Life and Wipro were among the top losers, down around 1-2 per cent.

"In anticipation of inflation data from the US, the Indian market exhibited range-bound trade. Though investors anticipate US inflation to ease, global markets, expecting a CY24 interest rate cut, have already priced in optimism," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services said.

"Profit booking occurred amid moderating Q3 corporate earnings and concerns about premium valuations. Selling pressure on IT stocks stemmed from weak earnings estimates," he added.

Global Market

European shares climbed on Thursday, led by a rise in automobile and technology stocks, while investors awaited U.S. inflation data for more clarity on the trajectory of interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and other major central banks.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was up 0.5 per cent by 0921 GMT. Market participants keenly await the U.S. inflation report, due at 8:30 a.m. ET, to assess the timing of rate cuts from the Fed, which will help set the tone for other central banks.

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