Market ends higher with Nifty reclaiming 25,400; L&T, Tata Steel lead gains

The equity benchmark indices BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty closed higher on Thursday (January 29), with the Nifty reclaiming the 25,400 level, led by gains in stocks such as L&T, Tata Steel and Coal India. All major indices ended in the green, even as market breadth remained in favour of declines.

The Sensex rose 222 points to close at 82,566, while the Nifty gained 76 points to end at 25,419. The Nifty Bank index outperformed, rising 359 points to 59,958, supported by gains in Axis Bank, AU Small Finance Bank, ICICI Bank and Federal Bank. The Midcap index added 102 points to settle at 58,541.

From the Sensex basket, Tata Steel Ltd, Larsen & Toubro Ltd, Axis Bank Ltd, NTPC Ltd, Hindalco Industries Ltd and Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd

were the major gainers.

Asian Paints Ltd, SBI Life Insurance Company Ltd, InterGlobe Aviation Ltd, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, Tata Consumer Products Ltd and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd

were the biggest laggards.

Metal stocks extended their rally for a third straight session, with Hindustan Copper hitting a record high. L&T was among the top gainers on the Nifty, rising 4% after its Q3 results. ABB India surged 10% after its global parent reported Q4 earnings.

In the midcap space, MRPL, NLC India, Oil India, NMDC and Indus Towers gained between 4% and 8%. Gillette jumped nearly 6% on strong Q3 results.

On the downside, Maruti Suzuki fell over 2% after Jefferies cut its target price to ₹16,000 per share. Asian Paints slid nearly 11% over four sessions and emerged as the top Nifty loser for the day.

Deepak Fertilisers fell over 6% after its Q3 net profit dropped 44%. Canara Bank slid nearly 8%, while KPIT Technologies declined 6% following its Q3 results. The NSE advance-decline ratio stood at 2:3 at the close of trade.