The headline equity benchmarks traded with decent gains in early afternoon trade, driven by optimism after the GST Council announced big tax cuts. At the same time, weak U.S. job numbers raised hopes that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates, helping to boost the market.

The Nifty traded above the 24,800 level. PSU Bank shares extended gains for the second trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex gained 277.13 points or 0.34% to 80,993.10. The Nifty 50 index rose 88.65 points or 0.36% to 24,828.65.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.70% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index jumped 0.50%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,393 shares rose and 1,621 shares fell. A total of 218 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 2.90% to 11.17. The Nifty 30 September 2025 futures were trading at 24,932, at a premium of 103.35 points as compared with the spot at 24,828.65.

The Nifty option chain for the 30 September 2025 expiry showed a maximum call OI of 60.7 lakh contracts at the 25,000 strike price. Maximum put OI of 44.5 lakh contracts was seen at 24,000 strike price.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty PSU Bank index rose 0.90% to 6,917.50. The index added 1.07% in the two trading session.

Indian Bank (up 2.53%), Indian Overseas Bank (up 2.18%), Central Bank of India (up 1.65%), Punjab & Sind Bank (up 1.05%) and Canara Bank (up 1.02%), Bank of Maharashtra (up 0.97%), Union Bank of India (up 0.93%), Bank of India (up 0.89%), Bank of Baroda (up 0.85%) and UCO Bank (up 0.73%) added.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Barbeque-Nation fell 1.35%. The company has announced the re-appointment of Rahul Agrawal as the company's chief executive officer (CEO) and whole-time director (WTD) for a term of five years.

Hero MotoCorp advanced 2.55% after the company announced the appointment of Harshavardhan Chitale as its chief executive officer, effective from Monday, 5th January 2026.

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