India's benchmark stock indices opened higher and were rangebound through midday on Friday.
As of 12:39 p.m., the S&P BSE Sensex was 372 points, or 0.58%, up at 64,453.31, while the NSE Nifty 50 rose 116 points, or 0.61%, to 19,249.05. Intraday, the Nifty and the BSE Sensex scaled the highest levels in over a week since Oct. 25.
Realty, media and healthcare sectors were the top gainers as all sectors advanced.
"The 19,250 region will be a point of indecision today, but as long as we do not get back below 19,170 after the initial rise, extended upside could be expected," Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said.
"Currently, the index is positioned in the middle of the range, which spans from 19,050 to 19,200, awaiting a decisive breakout in either direction," Mandar Bhojane, research analyst at Choice Broking, said.
Shares in Asia advanced after further gains for U.S. stocks as investors adjusted to the prospect that the Federal Reserve may be done with rate hikes.
Equity benchmarks in Hong Kong rallied more than 2%, while shares in Australia and South Korea climbed about 1%. The MSCI's Asia benchmark was on track for its best week in two months. Markets in Japan are closed for a holiday. The U.S. equity futures slipped following underwhelming results from Apple Inc.
On Thursday, the S&P 500 advanced 1.9%, its biggest one-day gain since April, and placed the benchmark on track for its best week since November last year.
HDFC Bank Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Tata Motors Ltd. and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd. were positively contributing to the change in the Nifty.
Bajaj Finance Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., Dr Reddy's Laboratories Ltd., SBI Life Insurance Co. and Nestle India Ltd. weighed on the index.
The broader market indices outperformed larger peers. The BSE Midcap was up 0.77%, while the BSE Smallcap was 1.03% higher.
All the 20 sectors compiled by the BSE Ltd. advanced, with Services, Consumer Durables and Consumer Discretionary rising the most.
The market breadth was skewed in the favour of the buyers. About 2,417 stocks rose, 1,135 declined, and 131 remained unchanged on the BSE.
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