Indian equity markets experienced a significant surge on Friday, with the Sensex and Nifty posting substantial gains, driven by global optimism following US President Trump's decision to call off military strikes on Iran and signal a potential peace deal, a development that dramatically reduced geopolitical risk and boosted Asian markets. This diplomatic breakthrough led to a sharp decline in oil prices, with Brent crude falling to near two-month lows, consequently easing concerns about imported inflation, the current account deficit, and the stability of the rupee, which positively impacted oil marketing companies, airlines, and infrastructure firms with Middle Eastern exposure. Further contributing to the buoyant market sentiment, all 16 major sectors recorded gains, while mid-cap and small-cap indices also advanced, and the Reserve Bank of India's announcement of a concessional forex swap facility bolstered banking stocks, although Iran's cautionary note about a final agreement being not yet reached introduced a degree of uncertainty regarding the predicted weekend signing.

Indian equity markets experienced a significant surge on Friday, with the Sensex and Nifty posting substantial gains, driven by global optimism following US President Trump's decision to call off military strikes on Iran and signal a potential peace deal, a development that dramatically reduced geopolitical risk and boosted Asian markets. This diplomatic breakthrough led to a sharp decline in oil prices, with Brent crude falling to near two-month lows, consequently easing concerns about imported inflation, the current account deficit, and the stability of the rupee, which positively impacted oil marketing companies, airlines, and infrastructure firms with Middle Eastern exposure. Further contributing to the buoyant market sentiment, all 16 major sectors recorded gains, while mid-cap and small-cap indices also advanced, and the Reserve Bank of India's announcement of a concessional forex swap facility bolstered banking stocks, although Iran's cautionary note about a final agreement being not yet reached introduced a degree of uncertainty regarding the predicted weekend signing.

Indian equity markets experienced a significant surge on Friday, with the Sensex and Nifty posting substantial gains, driven by global optimism following US President Trump's decision to call off military strikes on Iran and signal a potential peace deal, a development that dramatically reduced geopolitical risk and boosted Asian markets. This diplomatic breakthrough led to a sharp decline in oil prices, with Brent crude falling to near two-month lows, consequently easing concerns about imported inflation, the current account deficit, and the stability of the rupee, which positively impacted oil marketing companies, airlines, and infrastructure firms with Middle Eastern exposure. Further contributing to the buoyant market sentiment, all 16 major sectors recorded gains, while mid-cap and small-cap indices also advanced, and the Reserve Bank of India's announcement of a concessional forex swap facility bolstered banking stocks, although Iran's cautionary note about a final agreement being not yet reached introduced a degree of uncertainty regarding the predicted weekend signing.

Indian equity markets opened sharply higher on Friday, riding a wave of global optimism after US President Donald Trump called off planned military strikes on Iran and signalled that a peace deal between the two nations could be signed as early as this weekend in Europe.

The Sensex hit an intraday morning high of 74,859.16, surging over 1,026 points from Thursday's close, while the Nifty climbed to a morning high of 23,373.20, up by 211 points.

The diplomatic breakthrough dramatically reduced the geopolitical risk that had been weighing on global markets for weeks. Asian markets responded aggressively, with South Korea's Kospi jumping over 8 per cent and Japan's Nikkei 225 climbing more than 3 per cent. US markets had already closed significantly higher on Thursday.

For India, the most consequential knock-on effect was a sharp fall in oil prices. Brent crude dropped approximately 1.6 per cent to around $88.92 a barrel, near two-month lows, easing fears around imported inflation, the current account deficit, and rupee stability.

Oil marketing companies BPCL, HPCL, and Indian Oil rose between 2.4 and 3.8 per cent, while airline IndiGo gained 3.5 per cent. Infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro, which has significant exposure to the Middle East, climbed 2.8 per cent.

All 16 major sectors posted gains. Broader market indices also advanced, with mid-caps and small-caps rising 1.4 and 1.6 per cent, respectively. Adding to the positive mood, the Reserve Bank of India's announcement of a concessional forex swap facility for banks' overseas foreign-currency borrowings lifted banking stocks, with heavyweights rising 1.4 per cent and heading for their third gain in four sessions.

Iran, however, cautioned that a final agreement had not yet been reached, leaving some uncertainty around the weekend signing.

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