Market Close Report Today, August 28, 2026: Nifty, Sensex Snap Losing Streak As IT Helps Benchmarks End Higher

Mumbai, August 28: Indian equity benchmarks ended higher on Friday, after two consecutive sessions of losses as a sharp rally in information technology stocks helped lift the market. The Nifty 50 settled above the 24,100 mark, while the Sensex gained around 330 points. 

Nifty 50 rose 0.3% to 24,175.6 while Sensex advanced 0.4% to 77,264.5. 

The rally was led by IT stocks after a strong overnight performance in global technology shares, with Nvidia’s upbeat outlook reviving optimism around artificial intelligence spending. TCS, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Wipro and HCLTech were the top Nifty gainers. 

The gains were partly offset by weakness in several heavyweight stocks. Asian Paints, SBI Life Insurance, ITC, ICICI Bank and UltraTech Cement featured among the major Nifty losers, keeping the broader advance in check. 

IT, Metal Stocks Lead Sectoral Rally 

The sectoral picture was mixed, with the Nifty IT index surging 3.5%, emerging as the strongest performer of the session. Pharma, metal and media indices also gained around 0.4% each. 

On the losing side, consumer durables, energy, FMCG and realty indices declined about 0.4% each, reflecting a lack of broad-based buying outside technology and select sectors. 

The IT rally followed a strong overnight performance on Wall Street, where the tech heavy Nasdaq jumped 1.6% and Nvidia shares surged 8.7% after the chipmaker’s growth outlook reinforced expectations of sustained AI-related spending. 

Broader Market Lags 

The broader market remained largely subdued despite gains in the headline indices. The Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices ended little changed, suggesting that buying interest remained concentrated in large-cap technology stocks. 

Market participants also remained cautious after Thursday’s unusually volatile monthly expiry session, when the Sensex saw sharp swings during the closing auction. 

Oil, Fed Commentary In Focus 

Crude oil prices eased on Friday, with Brent futures falling 0.5% to around $89.20 a barrel. The decline offered some relief to India, a major crude importer, although oil remained elevated amid continuing geopolitical uncertainty. 

Investors also kept an eye on Federal Reserve commentary at the Jackson Hole symposium for clues on the U.S. interest-rate outlook. Any change in expectations around global borrowing costs could influence foreign flows and risk appetite in emerging markets. 

Friday’s recovery therefore provided some respite to Indian equities, but the uneven sectoral performance and subdued broader market indicate that investors remain cautious. IT stocks, crude prices, foreign flows and global monetary-policy signals are likely to remain key drivers for the domestic market in the coming sessions. 

Source

• NSE
• BSE