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Sensex and Nifty End October on a High as Foreign Investors Return

By Beauty of Bharat · Published 31 October 2026

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Indian stock markets ended the last trading week of October 2026 on a stronger note, with the Sensex closing at 74,459.53 and the Nifty 50 at 23,053.10 on Friday, October 30. The Sensex rose 308.49 points, or 0.42 percent, on the day, while the Nifty gained 116.35 points, or 0.51 percent, reclaiming the psychologically important 23,000 level as foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers for the week.

This post reflects reporting available on 31 October 2026, including Financial Express via Reuters, October 31, 2026, ET BFSI via IANS, October 31, 2026 and Ahmedabad Mirror, October 31, 2026. Where sources disagree or a detail is unconfirmed, the article says so.

Friday's close and the weekly rebound

For the week, the Sensex gained 1,335.7 points, or about 1.82 to 1.83 percent, and the Nifty climbed 453.1 points, or 2 percent, according to Reuters reporting carried by the Financial Express and IANS reporting carried by ET BFSI. That weekly recovery followed a choppy October and, on the monthly view, both indices snapped a two-month losing streak: the Sensex gained 2.73 percent in October and the Nifty rose 1.91 percent, with the Sensex posting its best monthly gain in six months.

The rupee also firmed on Friday, appreciating 33 paise to close at 94.93 against the US dollar, supported by the positive trend in domestic markets and a softer US dollar, though elevated crude prices capped sharper gains. Buying was led on Friday by IT stocks and by earnings-driven demand in Trent, the Tata Group's retail arm, according to market reporting.

What drove the turnaround

The clearest driver was the return of foreign money. FIIs were net buyers of Rs 6,304.67 crore worth of shares during the week, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 3,109.79 crore, according to IANS figures repeated across outlets. That dual inflow, alongside easing bond yields, softer crude prices and favourable domestic earnings results, revived risk appetite after weeks in which foreign selling had weighed on sentiment.

Analyst commentary cited in the reporting points to near-term levels to watch: immediate Nifty resistance in the 23,175 to 23,285 range, with support at 22,750 to 22,800 in one account, and a 50-day exponential moving average near 23,160 that the index had yet to reclaim. Those are technical markers from market analysts, not forecasts, and they underline that the recovery, while firm, was not yet a decisive breakout.

The split beneath the headline

Beneath the headline indices, October was a divided month. While the Sensex and Nifty rose for the month, the BSE Midcap index fell 3.96 percent and the Smallcap index plunged 7.65 percent during October, according to the Financial Express, even though broader indices recovered during the final week. Reports differed on the exact weekly gains for midcaps and smallcaps, so this article does not rely on a single figure for them.

Crude remains the main risk heading into November. Brent crude was reported at around $113 to $117 a barrel at the end of the week, with the range reflecting different outlets' reporting, and the upcoming OPEC+ review is being watched for any supply response. With markets closed for the weekend, investors will also watch quarterly earnings, foreign fund flows and geopolitical developments for the direction of Monday's open.

Context and what to watch

The headline of this week is the return of foreign investors, and the numbers give it weight. The Sensex closed on 30 October at 74,459.53, up 308.49 points or 0.42 per cent, and the Nifty 50 at 23,053.10, up 116.35 points or 0.51 per cent; across the week, foreign institutional investors were net buyers of Rs 6,304.67 crore of shares, while domestic institutional investors bought a net Rs 3,109.79 crore, according to IANS figures. October as a whole saw the Sensex rise 2.73 per cent and the Nifty 1.91 per cent, snapping a two-month losing streak — a turnaround driven, on the week's evidence, by foreign money coming back.

The split beneath the headline is the caution. Midcap and smallcap indices fell sharply over October — down 3.96 per cent and 7.65 per cent respectively on Financial Express figures — despite recovering in the final week, and weekly midcap and smallcap gains differ by outlet, so the breadth of the recovery is less certain than the headline indices suggest. Brent crude is likewise reported near 117 dollars in one account and around 113 dollars in another. What to watch is whether foreign buying persists into November, whether the broader market catches up with the benchmarks, and which Brent figure the next round of reporting settles on.

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