Indian benchmark indices opened higher with Nifty above 15,750. At 09:20 hours, the 30-share BSE index was trading 13 points or 0.03 per cent higher at 52,666.79, and the broader NSE Nifty was up 6 points or 0.04 per cent to 15,784.65.
Bajaj Finserv and IndusInd Bank were the top losers in the Sensex pack, declining over 1 per cent, followed by Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, Asian Paints and L&T.
On the other hand, Tech Mahindra and HCL Tech were among the gainers.
On Thursday, the benchmark indices snapped their three-session losing streak led by a strong rally in metal stocks amid a positive trend in global markets. Sensex rose 209 points to close at 52,653 and Nifty gained 69 points to 15,778.
Commenting on the short-term outlook of the Indian equity market, Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities said, “Nifty witnessed a small high low range of 80 points on July 29 despite it being F&O expiry day. In terms of index, the markets are finding it difficult to breach near-term highs. However, the broader market continues to do well, boosted partly by Q1FY22 results. Nifty could remain in the 15,701-15,856 band for the next 1-2 sessions.”
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) emerged as net sellers as they sold shares worth Rs 866.26 crore on July 29, as per provisional data available on the NSE.