Indian equity benchmarks ended higher on Friday, supported by easing geopolitical concerns and renewed optimism over potential US-Iran peace talks. After making a cautious start, soon indices gained momentum and moved into positive territory, aided by fresh foreign fund inflows and broad-based buying across sectors.

Some of the important factors in trade:

FPIs continue buying momentum: Sentiment remained positive as foreign portfolio investors purchased Indian equities worth Rs 382.36 crore on Thursday, marking the second consecutive session of buying.  

India, New Zealand to sign FTA: Traders took support with the report said India and New Zealand will sign a free trade agreement (FTA) on April 27. The free trade pact aims to provide tariff-free access to the island nation's market for domestic exporters' goods and will bring in $20 billion in investment over the next 15 years.  

India to grow at 6.3% if oil prices average $130 per barrel in FY27: Traders took note that S&P Global Ratings stated India is likely to grow at 6.3% if oil prices average $130 per barrel in the current fiscal year (FY27).

On the global front: European markets were trading mostly in green tracking positive cues from Wall Street overnight. Asian markets ended mostly lower, as traders remained cautiously optimistic on hopes for an end to hostilities in the Middle East. Concerns remain about the fragility of any settlement as Tehran seems to be adamant with their nuclear program.

The BSE Sensex ended at 78493.54, up by 504.86 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 77726.23 and 78553.45. There were 25 stocks advancing against 5 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG up by 2.57%, Capital Goods up by 2.19%, Power up by 1.95%, Utilities up by 1.51% and Energy up by 1.43%, while there were no losing indices on the BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hindustan Unilever up by 4.70%, Power Grid Corp up by 1.91%, Reliance Industries up by 1.53%, Bharat Electronics up by 1.43% and Titan Company up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 1.04%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.60%, HCL Technologies down by 0.50%, Larsen & Toubro down by 0.37% and Eternal down by 0.14% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, India and South Korea are likely to advance discussions on trade and defence ties during the three-day visit of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung from April 19, 2026, underscoring their shared commitment to stronger bilateral cooperation. President Lee will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on strengthening bilateral cooperation across a wide spectrum of areas, including shipbuilding, trade, investments, AI, semiconductors, critical and emerging technologies and people-to-people connect. They will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. 

The India-South Korea strategic ties have been on an upswing in the last several years and the upcoming visit of President Lee underscores the shared aspiration of both countries to further strengthen the existing areas of cooperation while expanding collaboration in new and emerging areas of mutual interest. Meanwhile, the bilateral trade between the two countries for January to October 2025 was $21.5 billion. In 2024, the bilateral trade stood at $25.1 billion. Major items of India’s exports to South Korea are aluminum, cereals, iron and steel. Besides, South Korea is the 15th largest FDI investor of India. Total investment made by that country into India in 2024 amounted to $929 million.

The CNX Nifty ended at 24353.55, up by 156.80 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 24096.05 and 24371.90. There were 39 stocks advancing against 10 stocks declining on the index, while one stock remained unchanged. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindustan Unilever up by 4.75%, Nestle up by 2.58%, JSW Steel up by 2.21%, Apollo Hospital up by 2.08% and Power Grid Corp up by 1.87%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 2.83%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.38%, Sun Pharma Industries. down by 1.04%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.69% and HCL Technologies down by 0.54% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading mostly in green; France’s CAC rose 49.9 points or 0.6% to 8,312.60 and Germany’s DAX gained 160.93 points or 0.67% to 24,315.40, while UK’s FTSE 100 decreased 22 points or 0.21% to 10,567.99.