Nifty, Sensex climb in early trade on buying in Reliance, ICICI Bank

Stock market benchmark indices began the trade on an optimistic note on Thursday (August 21, 2025) amid buying in bluechips Reliance Industries and ICICI Bank. The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 373.33 points to 82,231.17 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up by 94.3 points to 25,144.85.

From the Sensex firms, Bajaj Finserv, Reliance Industries, Trent, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors and Bharat Electronics were among the major gainers. However, Eternal, Hindustan Unilever, Infosys and Tech Mahindra were among the laggards.

Market experts are of the opinion that the proposed GST reforms and a recent credit rating upgrade have bolstered investors’ confidence.

“An interesting trend in the market is the steady up move in India in contrast to the down trend in the U.S. While concerns of potential rising inflation in the U.S. is weighing on the market there, the bold reform initiatives in India and the sustained money flows into the market are imparting resilience to the market,” V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

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In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index traded in positive territory, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng quoted lower. The U.S. markets ended mostly lower on Wednesday (August 20, 2025).

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹1,100.09 crore on Wednesday (August 19, 2025), while Domestic Institutional Investors (DII) bought stocks worth ₹1,806.34 crore, according to exchange data.

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Investors also turned their attention towards U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s forthcoming statements at the Jackson Hole Symposium. Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.43% to $67.13 a barrel.

Rallying for the fifth day in a row on Wednesday (August 20, 2025), the Sensex climbed 213.45 points or 0.26% to settle at 81,857.84. The Nifty edged higher by 69.90 points or 0.28% to 25,050.55.