The Indian share market logged a third straight week of gains, even as benchmarks traded in a relatively narrow band. Broader markets continued to outperform, supported by strong performance in financials. For the week, the Nifty 50 and Sensex rose 0.6% each, with 30 of 50 Nifty constituents ending higher.

The Nifty Bank index led sectoral gains, climbing over 1.5%, while pharma and PSU bank stocks also advanced. On the downside, the PSU index emerged as the top laggard.

Sector and Stock Highlights

Among the top Nifty performers, Hindalco, Tech Mahindra, Shriram Finance, and Sun Pharma gained ground. Adani Enterprises, Bharti Airtel, Power Grid, and SBI Life were the biggest decliners.

In the midcap segment, stocks such as AB Capital, Ashok Leyland, L&T Finance, Varun Beverages, and IIFL Finance strengthened, while Kaynes, CG Power, SJVN, Solar Industries, and GAIL lagged.

On Friday, the market ended flat for the second consecutive session, with Sensex slipping 14 points to 85,707 and Nifty falling 13 points to 26,203. The Midcap index dropped 70 points to 61,043, while the Nifty Bank added 15 points to close at 59,753. Market breadth tilted slightly towards declines even as frontline indices remained largely unchanged.

Key Movers and Corporate Updates

• M&M rose 2% following positive brokerage commentary on its new electric vehicles.
• Auto stocks posted modest gains ahead of monthly sales data expected to show healthy growth.
• Insurance stocks were under pressure, with SBI Life and HDFC Life down 2% each.
• Shriram Finance fell 2% on profit-booking after recent gains.
• GAIL declined 4% following a PNGRB tariff hike below expectations.
• Capital market-related stocks saw weakness, with Angel One down 3%. Page Industries and IEX slipped 2% and 1% respectively.

Among individual movers, SRF and Paytm rose up to 3% on positive brokerage views. Laurus Labs, IIFL Finance, Aditya Birla Capital, GMR Airports, L&T Finance, and Hero MotoCorp touched 52-week highs.

Special highlights included:

• 63 Moons Technologies surged 17% after NCLT approved NSEL’s one-time settlement.
• Refex Industries jumped 8% after winning a ₹100 crore excavation contract.
• Eureka Forbes advanced 7% on a strong outlook, with management projecting a potential doubling of revenue by FY30.

Overall, the market remained selective, with financials, auto, and pharma leading gains, while insurance and PSU names underperformed.