India's Nifty tops 24,200 as Reliance, major banks set to report
Indian equities surged past global weakness as investors focused on a packed earnings calendar headlined by Reliance Industries and the country's largest lenders.
Indian equities defied a broader global market downturn and escalating US-Iran geopolitical tensions on Friday. The Sensex rallied roughly 600 points while the Nifty 50 breached 24,200, driven by a heavy rotation into domestic earnings catalysts as the April-June reporting season accelerates.
The market's immediate focus is on a packed corporate calendar, with 33 companies scheduled to release first-quarter results today. The Friday roster is headlined by conglomerate Reliance Industries, alongside JSW Steel, Federal Bank, Havells India and Oberoi Realty. This high-volume momentum continues directly into Saturday. A separate block of heavyweight lenders is queued to report, including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Punjab National Bank and IDFC First Bank.
Early trading reactions to Thursday's results highlighted a strict premium on growth execution within the IT sector. Wipro shares fell more than 3% after muted profit growth led multiple brokerages to reduce their target prices. Tech Mahindra moved in the opposite direction, jumping more than 3% after its June quarter earnings beat analyst estimates, prompting several brokerages to hike their targets for the stock. Jio Financial Services and tyre maker Ceat also reported on Thursday.
For Reliance Industries, consensus estimates point toward consolidated EBITDA expanding between 4% and 10% year-on-year. The primary driver is anticipated to be the oil-to-chemicals business, buoyed by stronger refining margins, tighter petrochemical spreads, a weaker domestic rupee and operational benefits tied to its SEZ refinery. The telecom arm, Jio, is expected to provide a secondary lift through subscriber additions and higher average revenue per user ahead of a planned IPO.
However, Reliance's retail division is expected to act as a drag on the conglomerate's overall performance. Analysts warn that weak consumer consumption trends and persistent margin pressure will keep the retail segment soft. Additionally, the upstream oil and gas business is forecast to decline year-on-year due to lower production volumes from the KG-D6 block.
Despite these localized pockets of softness, the overarching institutional sentiment toward Indian equities remains resilient. Goldman Sachs has adopted a more constructive stance on the market following recent improvements in the macroeconomic backdrop. The bank projects the Nifty 50 will reach 26,500 by June 2027, a level that exceeds the index's current all-time record high of 26,373.
