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The Indian stock market today, on Friday, January 16, 2026, is ending the week with strong gains. Benchmark indices are showing bullish signals. Sensex is trading at 83,988.79, up 606 points or 0.71% at press time. Nifty gained 159.75 points or 0.62% to 25,824.25.
Market breadth remained positive with about 2,181 shares advancing against 1,361 declining stocks on the exchanges. Both mid-cap and small-cap indices are rising around 0.5% each. This shows signs of recovery from the previous session's losses and indicates renewed investor confidence. Here’s everything that happened in the stock market today based on Moneycontrol Live Updates.
While the IT and banking sectors are leading gains in the stock market today. On the other hand, the pharma sector is facing selling pressure. The index declined 0.7% for the sixth consecutive session. Cipla shares fell 2.17%, while Sun Pharma and other pharma stocks traded in the red zone.
The realty index bounced back, rising 1.5% after a seven-day losing streak. Prestige Estate, Godrej Properties, and DLF all soared between 1%-2.5%. Media stocks underperformed with Nifty Media index slipping 0.3%. DB Corp, Sun TV Network, and PVR Inox were among the top losers in this segment.
Nifty IT index was one of the top performers today, surging nearly 2.5% during trading hours. Infosys share price led the rally with a 5.17% gain, trading at Rs. 1,682.50. The company raised its FY26 revenue growth guidance to 3-3.5% from the earlier 2-3%. However, it reported a 2.2% decline in quarterly profit due to labor code charges.
Tech Mahindra shares jumped 3.12% to Rs. 1,638, their biggest single-day gain in eight months. Other IT majors, including Wipro, LTIMindtree, and HCL Technologies, also gained today. LTIMindtree received a major boost after securing the Insight 2.0 project worth Rs. 3,000 crore from CBDT.
The banking sector is rising for the fourth time this week, with the Nifty Bank index rising 0.79%. Federal Bank stock led with a 3.75% jump. It was followed by AU Small Finance Bank gaining 2.74% and Punjab National Bank up 2.71%.
HDFC Bank continues to be one of the most active stocks with high trading volumes worth Rs. 1,642.90 crore. The bank is scheduled to announce its quarterly results on January 17, along with ICICI Bank and many other financial institutions.
Reliance Industries stock is trading at Rs. 1,477.40, up 1.28%. The company is set to announce its quarterly earnings later in the day.
Shriram Finance shares saw strong gains of 3.84%, trading at Rs. 1,018.80. The company's shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favor of issuing shares to MUFG Bank through preferential placement, with 98.5% approval.
ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company reported impressive Q3 results with profit jumping 45% to Rs. 917 crore. The stock surged 2.54% and touched a 52-week high of Rs. 2,885 during trading.
Jio Financial Services posted a profit of Rs. 269 crore for Q3, though down 8.75% year-on-year. However, total income more than doubled, and the NBFC's assets under management grew 4.5 times to Rs. 19,049 crore.
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Indian rupee opened lower at 90.37 per dollar compared to the previous close of 90.30. Meanwhile, global oil prices remained flat with Brent trading around $63.73 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors continued their selling streak, offloading shares worth Rs. 4,781 crore on January 14. However, Domestic Institutional Investors provided strong support by buying shares worth Rs. 5,217 crore on the same day. For January so far, FIIs have been net sellers of Rs. 21,702 crore, while DIIs have bought shares worth Rs. 30,140 crore, helping stabilize the Indian stock market.
The stock market today shows positive momentum with improving sentiment ahead of more corporate earnings announcements. Strong Q3 results from major IT companies and sustained buying by domestic investors provide support to the markets. However, ongoing FII outflows and global uncertainties remain key factors to watch in the coming sessions.
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1. Why did the Sensex and Nifty rise sharply today?
Today's sharp rise in the Sensex and Nifty was triggered by several influential factors. Strong buying activity in the banking and financial services sectors came alongside positive earnings report results and strong support from Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs). Moreover, Infosys' decision to increase its revenue guidance spurred positive activity in the IT sector as a whole.
2. Which sectors performed the best in the stock market today?
Today's stock market activity showed that the IT sector outperformed all other sectors. Nifty IT Index went up 2.5%. During the past four days, the banking sector has continued to experience growth in both share prices and earnings, with many companies within that sector reporting positive results. The real estate sector also regained momentum after losing ground recently.
3. Why are IT stocks rallying despite mixed global cues?
The rise in IT stocks was due to the fact that Infosys provided a positive indication of stability within that sector's demand for FY26, and therefore, investors were willing to take a chance on buying into an uncertain environment. In addition, confirmation of large deal wins and optimism about scheduled earnings reports for all IT companies contributed to investors feeling confident in their knowledge about this market segment's growth potential, creating a wave of enthusiasm among purchasers of IT shares.
4. What role did FIIs and DIIs play in today’s market movement?
Today’s market movement was very much influenced by a combination of Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) and Domestic Institutional Investor (DII) activity on the buying side. While FIIs were net sellers throughout the day, DIIs purchased over Rs. 5,200 crores of equities, providing a cushion to offset any negative impact from FIIs and stabilizing the overall market.
5. What should investors watch in the coming sessions?
Moving forward, investors should remain aware of upcoming corporate earnings reports from major financial institutions (Banks), monitor global market activity and observe changes in FII activity. Additionally, the ongoing support provided by domestic investors and recent earnings performance will determine whether market momentum continues or ceases to exist.
