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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nStock market rally today: Nifty50<\/a> and BSE Sensex<\/a>, the Indian equity benchmark indices, rallied strongly in trade on Friday even as a global markets selloff was underway. Both the benchmarks rose 1% as the IT sector and banking stocks rallied.The rally in frontline indices came even as the broader market remained under pressure, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices declining by as much as 0.8%.The sharp rally in Indian equities came even as global markets remained under heavy pressure. Japan’s Nikkei tumbled more than 5%, while Taiwan’s Weighted Index plunged 6% as the sell-off in semiconductor stocks continued. Investor sentiment was also weighed down by rising crude oil prices following the escalation of the Iran-US conflict. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and China’s Shanghai Composite each declined more than 2%. South Korea’s Kospi remained closed for trading on account of the country’s Constitution Day.<\/p>\n Strong rally in IT stocks<\/span>Information technology stocks spearheaded the market’s advance after Tech Mahindra reported first-quarter earnings that exceeded market expectations, lifting investor confidence. According to Nomura, Tech Mahindra delivered a broad-based earnings beat in the first quarter of FY27. The brokerage, along with several others, now expects the company to outperform its large-cap peers in terms of growth during FY27 and FY28.Investor sentiment received an additional boost after HCL Tech announced a fresh seven-year agreement with The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian). The expanded partnership aims to accelerate AI-driven modernisation across the insurer’s technology platform and business operations.Momentum from first-quarter earnings<\/span>Shares of Reliance Industries<\/a> (RIL) climbed more than 2%, providing significant support to the gains in the Sensex and Nifty. The Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate is expected to announce its first-quarter FY2027 results after market hours on Friday. Jio Financial Services emerged as the top gainer on the Nifty, with its shares surging 6% after the company reported a 155% year-on-year increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 830 crore for the first quarter, compared with Rs 325 crore in the same period last year.Private sector banking stocks also attracted strong buying ahead of their quarterly results scheduled for Saturday. Shares of HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank and ICICI Bank gained as much as 2%, placing them among the day’s top performers.Rupee strengthens<\/span>The rupee appreciated by 14 paise to 96.28 against the US dollar during early trading.\u201cMarket participants will continue to monitor crude oil, foreign fund flows, and geopolitical developments for further direction. Technically, the rupee faces immediate resistance near 96.00, with the near-term trading range seen between 96.00\u201396.60,\u201d said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst of Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities.Technical breakout signals<\/span>According to Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit Investments, several sessions of subdued trading coupled with a narrowing price range have resulted in a triangular chart pattern, indicating the possibility of a breakout from the current trading range. However, he cautioned that the market is yet to establish a clear directional trend and could witness heightened volatility before a sustained move emerges.\u201cTowards this end, we will continue to eye the 23940-24270 range, aiming for upswings as the starting bias,\u201d the analyst said.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, or any other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts and analysts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India.)<\/span><\/div>\nWhy is the stock market up today?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n