Markets open higher; IT stocks lead gains as investors await Warsh’s Jackson Hole speech

Tech Mahindra was the top gainer on the Nifty 50, rising 3.25 per cent to ₹1,636.50 against a previous close of ₹1,585.
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Equity benchmarks opened in positive territory on Friday, August 28, with technology stocks driving early gains, even as investors stayed cautious ahead of US Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s maiden Jackson Hole keynote later in the day.

The Sensex, which closed at 76,933.59 on Thursday, opened at 77,128.05 and was trading at 77,181.97, up 248.38 points or 0.32 per cent, as of 9.25 AM. The Nifty 50, which ended the previous session at 24,090.85, opened at 24,122.60 and rose to 24,143.30, up 52.45 points or 0.22 per cent, at the same time.

Thursday’s session had seen both indices decline for the second straight day, with the Nifty shedding 116.90 points and the Sensex falling 539 points, weighed down by selling pressure in banking and metal stocks.

Information technology stocks dominated early Friday trade, riding overnight gains on Wall Street after Nvidia’s second-quarter revenue surged 106 per cent year-on-year and beat analyst expectations, lifting semiconductor and AI-linked technology shares globally. The Nasdaq Composite closed 1.57 per cent higher overnight.

Tech Mahindra was the top gainer on the Nifty 50, rising 3.25 per cent to ₹1,636.50 against a previous close of ₹1,585. TCS advanced 2.86 per cent to ₹2,312.70 from ₹2,248.40, while Infosys gained 2.50 per cent to ₹1,138.60 against a previous close of ₹1,110.80. HCL Technologies was up 2.33 per cent at ₹1,311.90 compared to its previous close of ₹1,282, and Wipro rose 1.84 per cent to ₹179.65 from ₹176.40.

Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research at Kotak Securities, noted that…”if the market manages to trade above the 24,000/76,800 support zone, we can expect a technical bounce back… above this level, it could bounce back to 24,200–24,250/77,300–77,500.”

On the other side of the ledger, financial stocks faced selling pressure. Bajaj Finance fell 1.30 per cent to ₹1,068.90 from a previous close of ₹1,083, while Bajaj Finserv declined 1.10 per cent to ₹1,988.90 against ₹2,011. Shriram Finance slipped 0.77 per cent to ₹1,092.50 from ₹1,101, SBI Life Insurance was down 0.62 per cent to ₹1,762.20 against ₹1,773.20, and BEL dipped 0.68 per cent to ₹408.20 from ₹411.

Brent crude, which had eased during the week, rose nearly 1.8 per cent on Thursday, moving back toward $88–89 per barrel, as diplomatic efforts to resolve the Strait of Hormuz situation remained inconclusive. While Iran and Oman have reportedly reached an initial understanding on managing navigation through the waterway, Tehran has indicated that a full resolution requires more than a bilateral arrangement.

V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said…”total lack of clarity on this issue is weighing on the market… a breakout above the range will happen only if some of the Nifty heavyweights like HDFC Bank, RIL, L&T and the IT majors participate in the rally.”

Market participants are closely watching Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s first address at the Jackson Hole symposium. The Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, the PCE index, came in slightly above expectations at 3.7 per cent, leaving the rate outlook uncertain. US 10-year bond yields firmed to 4.68 per cent, an additional headwind for emerging markets including India.

Devarsh Vakil, Head of Prime Research at HDFC Securities, noted that…”markets are looking for signals on the rate path amid PCE inflation at 3.7 per cent.”

On Thursday, foreign institutional investors turned net sellers, offloading equities worth ₹298 crore, while domestic institutional investors extended their buying streak with purchases of ₹4,977 crore, cushioning the broader market decline.

The derivatives setup shows Put-Call Ratio at 1.18, with maximum Call open interest clustered at 24,300–24,500, indicating overhead supply. India VIX rose to 11.07. Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder and CEO of HST Wealth, observed that…”a single strong session could force call writers to unwind positions and quickly shift the market’s balance in favour of buyers.”

Analysts broadly expect the Nifty to trade in the 23,800–24,600 range in the near term, with the session’s direction hinging significantly on Warsh’s tone at Jackson Hole.

Published on August 28, 2026