Indian stock markets ended a choppy session marginally higher on Thursday, 12 November 2026, as buying in realty and banking shares offset profit-taking in autos, FMCG and IT stocks. It was the third straight day of gains for the benchmark indices, though the rise was small.

How the indices closed

The 30-share BSE Sensex gained 31.61 points, or 0.04 per cent, to close at 81,911.01. During the day it swung between 81,576.15 and 82,325.61, according to BusinessLine. The NSE Nifty 50 rose 44.30 points, or 0.18 per cent, to settle at 25,299.35.

The Nifty Bank index was the standout among large indices. It rose 726.10 points, or 1.19 per cent, to 61,518.50, its eighth consecutive session of gains, BusinessLine reported.

Realty leads, autos drag

The Nifty Realty index surged about 4.5 per cent by BusinessLine's count, while The Hans India put the gain at about 4 per cent. Media, insurance and public sector bank indices also ended higher. On the other side, the auto index fell by more than 1 per cent, FMCG dropped 0.74 per cent, and IT slipped 0.41 per cent, its fourth straight session of decline, according to BusinessLine.

Among Nifty 50 stocks, HDFC Life gained 3.91 per cent to Rs 596, Shriram Finance rose 3.51 per cent to Rs 1,003.15 and Bajaj Finance added 3.06 per cent to Rs 1,111.80. Mahindra & Mahindra was the biggest loser, down 2.51 per cent at Rs 3,378, followed by Nestle India, down 2.11 per cent at Rs 1,260.80, and Maruti Suzuki, down 1.84 per cent at Rs 12,942.

Broader markets do better

The broader market again did better than the headline indices. The Nifty Midcap 100 rose about 0.85 per cent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 gained about 1.12 per cent. Analysts quoted by The Hans India said this showed investors were still willing to take risk beyond large companies. Ajit Mishra of Religare Broking told BusinessLine that after the recent sharp rally, some consolidation and rotation between sectors appears healthy.

Rupee, crude and foreign money

The rupee had a choppy day. According to BusinessLine it touched a six-month high of 93.62 to the dollar before demand for dollars pushed it back. It closed at 94.04, down 33 paise from Wednesday's close of 93.71, as per provisional data reported by Telangana Today. Forex traders cited a stronger US dollar and expectations of a US interest rate hike in December.

Brent crude, the global benchmark, was near 92 dollars a barrel, which analysts described as supportive for Indian markets. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth about Rs 12,563 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data cited by PTI. BusinessLine puts their total November buying at around 6.43 billion dollars so far. Domestic institutional investors were net sellers for a ninth straight session.

What analysts say about the Nifty

Technical analysts quoted by The Hans India said the Nifty has been moving in a narrow range for the past two to three sessions. They see support at 25,000 and then 24,800, and resistance at 25,500. They also noted the index is in overbought territory, so a mild pullback cannot be ruled out, though the broader bias stays positive.

What to watch on Friday

The October retail inflation figure was due after market hours. It came in at 6.09 per cent, above the RBI's 6 per cent upper limit, which market participants had flagged as a possible source of volatility on Friday, especially for rate-sensitive sectors such as banks and realty. Gift Nifty indicators pointed to a flat start, according to HDFC Sky.

Company results on Friday include Grasim Industries, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, ABB India, Eicher Motors and Godrej group companies. Investors will watch whether earnings can support a rally that so far has leaned heavily on foreign inflows.

This report is for information only and is not investment advice.