Benchmark indices recovered sharply from intraday lows and traded in positive territory during the afternoon session on Thursday, supported by gains in private banking and pharmaceutical stocks.

The BSE Sensex rose 376.85 points, or 0.51 per cent, to 74,360.03 at 12.33 pm, after falling to an intraday low of 73,518.75 earlier in the day. The Nifty 50 gained 101.85 points, or 0.44 per cent, to 23,316.80 after opening lower at 23,104.40.

Sensex rebounded nearly 861 points to 74,380.22 from the day’s low of 73,518.75 during the session, while Nifty 50 climbed over 250 points to 23,324.25.

Private banks, pharma lead recovery

Sectoral performance remained mixed, with Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Pharma emerging as the top gainers, advancing more than 1 per cent each.

However, the Nifty IT index continued to underperform, declining 1.33 per cent. PSU Bank and Financial Services indices also traded in the red.

Among Nifty 50 constituents, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries and Mahindra & Mahindra were the top gainers. Infosys, HCLTech, Trent, Bajaj Finance and Eternal were among the biggest laggards.

Broader markets lag benchmarks

The broader market dipped despite the recovery in benchmark indices. The Nifty Midcap 100 declined 0.40 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 slipped 0.26 per cent.

In the midcap segment, Vodafone Idea, IRCTC, MCX, Mankind Pharma and IndusInd Bank gained 1-4 per cent. On the other hand, HPCL, One97 Communications (Paytm), Tata Communications and HUDCO fell 2-3 per cent.

Among smallcaps, Aegis Logistics, Wockhardt and Gland Pharma surged 4-13 per cent, while Ola Electric, MRPL, Afcons Infrastructure and Zensar Technologies declined 3-4 per cent.

Market breadth continued to favour declines. Of the 3,193 stocks traded on the NSE at the time of writing, 1,084 advanced, 2,024 declined and 85 remained unchanged.

A total of 31 stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 63 touched fresh 52-week lows. Additionally, 49 stocks were locked in their upper circuits, compared with 99 stocks that hit their lower circuit limits.

Citi cuts Nifty target, cites geopolitical and AI risks

Meanwhile, Citi lowered its Nifty valuation multiple to 18 times from 19 times earlier and trimmed its Nifty target to 26,000 from 27,000.

The brokerage said market valuations, which are now closer to their 10-year long-term average, appear more reasonable compared with the elevated levels seen over the past few years.

Citi noted that geopolitical uncertainties, concerns around artificial intelligence and El Niño-related risks are weighing on foreign institutional investor sentiment towards India.

The brokerage added that the key near-term concern is whether the strong consumer demand trends witnessed in the March quarter can be sustained.

However, Citi maintained a constructive medium-term outlook, stating that relatively low investor positioning and a healthy growth outlook could create room for upside if tensions in West Asia ease and foreign investor outflows moderate.

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Published on June 11, 2026