Taking Stock | Market begins 2023 on a strong note; Sensex gains 327 points, Nifty nears 18,200

Stock Market Today:

The Indian equity market began the year on a strong note as benchmarks ended the first session of the calendar year 2023 on a positive note with Nifty around 18,200 led by buying across the sectors barring pharma.

At Close, the Sensex was up 327.05 points or 0.54% at 61,167.79, while the Nifty was up 92.20 points or 0.51% at 18,197.50.

Amid muted global cues, the market started in the green and extended the gains as the day progressed. However, it witnessed some profit booking intraday but closed the session near the day's high levels, especially supported by the metal stocks.

"Investors welcomed the new year on a high note with data showing strengthening domestic business conditions. India’s manufacturing PMI rose to 57.8 in December from 55.7 in the previous month, with new orders rising at the fastest pace since February 2021," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

"Metal stocks led the surge following reports of China raising export duties to support their domestic demand, which is positive for India."

"We expect 2023 to be a year to buy equities in anticipation that a large part of the global recession has already been factored in the market," Nair added.

Also Read - Best bets this new year: Brokerages list top stock picks for 2023

Stocks and sectors

Index	Prices	Change	Change%
Sensex	83,216.28	-94.73	-0.11%
Nifty 50	25,492.30	-17.40	-0.07%
Nifty Bank	57,876.80	322.55	+0.56%

Nifty 50 25,492.30 -17.40 (-0.07%)

Fri, Nov 07, 2025

• 1D
• 5D
• 1M
• 3M
• 6M
• 1Y
• 2Y

Biggest Gainer	Prices	Change	Change%
Shriram Finance	816.35	23.85	+3.01%

Biggest Loser	Prices	Change	Change%
Bharti Airtel	2,001.20	-93.70	-4.47%

Best Sector	Prices	Change	Change%
Nifty Metal	10426.80	144.90	+1.41%

Worst Sector	Prices	Change	Change%
Nifty Infra	9393.60	-95.20	-1.00%

Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries, ONGC, Tata Motors and ICICI Bank were among the biggest Nifty gainers. However, losers included Titan Company, Asian Paints, Divi's Labs, Bajaj Auto and Hero MotoCorp.

On the sectoral front, the Nifty metal index added 2.4 percent, while auto, bank, energy, infra, PSU bank and information technology indices rose 0.4-0.8 percent. On the other hand, the pharma index shed 0.37 percent.

Broader indices performed in line with benchmarks with BSE midcap and smallcap indices rising 0.5 percent each.

On the BSE, the metal index rallied nearly 3 percent and the realty index added 1 percent, while some selling was seen in the healthcare stocks.

Also Read - Recession will hit a third of the world this year, warns IMF chief

A long build-up was seen in SAIL, IDFC First Bank, Power Finance Bank, while a short build-up was seen in Multi Commodity Exchange of India, Dr Lal PathLabs and Page Industries.

On the BSE, Apollo Micro Systems, Equitas Holdings, Canara Bank, Kalpataru Power Transmission, Usha Martin, Jindal Steel & Power, PNB Housing Finance, touched their 52-week high.

Outlook for January 3

Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities:

Markets gained confidence in the afternoon trades after European indices advanced sharply in their early trades. Local traders lapped up metals, realty and banking shares, which had faced relentless selling in the last week's sell-off.

However, markets may face strong bouts of volatility as investors brace for earnings season and the upcoming Union Budget.

Technically, the Nifty is consolidating between 18,050 and 18,250 levels. For the bulls 18,250 would be the fresh breakout level to watch out for, and above the same it could move up to 18,350-18,400.

On the flip side, below 18,100, there is a strong possibility of a quick intraday correction. Below the same, the index could slip till 18,050-18,000.

Gaurav Ratnaparkhi, Head of Technical Research, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas:

The Nifty has been witnessing short term consolidation for the last few sessions. On the higher side, a rising trendline & the key daily moving averages are acting as resistances whereas the 20-week moving average & the 50% retracement of the Sept – Dec 2022 rally are providing support on the downside.

The overall structure shows that the index can continue with the short term consolidation in the range of 17,800-18,400. Within this range, the Nifty is attempting a move towards 18,400. The level of 18,000 is acting as an intermediate support.

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