Nifty 50 Rises 2.40% on Nov 5, 2026 as Oil Slump Lifts Banks, Autos

Key takeaways

• The Nifty 50 rose 2.40%, or 576.00 points, to 24,536.60 at the close (10:00 UTC) on Thursday, Nov 5, 2026, its sixth straight gain, according to Yahoo Finance and Investing.com data.
• The BSE Sensex gained 2.60%, or 2,008.61 points, to 79,310.01 at the 10:00 UTC close, according to Yahoo Finance data and ChiniMandi.
• Banks and carmakers led: the Nifty Bank index rose 3.33% to 57,773.65 and the Nifty Auto index climbed 4.14%, while the Nifty IT index added 2.42%.
• January Brent futures settled 8.67% lower at $94.62 a barrel on Wednesday, Nov 4, after the US midterm results, according to Yahoo Finance data. They traded at $96.16 at 10:06 UTC on Nov 5.
• Foreign institutional investors bought a net ₹7,284.03 crore of Indian shares on Nov 4, provisional exchange data cited by India TV and PSU Watch showed. That was the day before this session.

Session recap

Indian shares had their strongest session in this run on Thursday, Nov 5, 2026. The Nifty 50 closed 2.40% higher at 24,536.60 at 10:00 UTC (15:30 IST), as cheaper oil and returning foreign money lifted banks, financials and carmakers. For the regional picture, see Asian and global market closes. Thursday's gain followed a smaller rise covered in our Nov 4 India market brief. Over six sessions the Nifty has gained 8.10% from its Oct 28 close of 22,698.85, according to Yahoo Finance data.

Most of the gain came at the open. The Nifty 50 opened at 24,378.05 and the Sensex at 78,910.94, against previous closes of 23,960.60 and 77,301.40, according to Investing.com data and an India TV report. India TV said every Sensex stock was in the green in early trade, with 2,769 shares advancing and 458 declining on the NSE at that point. Investing.com's historical table showed a Sensex close of 79,373.18. Bullquill uses the 79,310.01 figure, which Yahoo Finance and ChiniMandi both showed. Investing.com also put the Nifty Bank at 57,795.90, against Yahoo's 57,773.65.

The gains were broad but uneven. ChiniMandi reported that the Nifty Midcap index rose 1.8% and the Nifty Smallcap index 0.6%. Energy and media were the only sectors that fell. It named Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance, InterGlobe Aviation, Maruti Suzuki and ICICI Bank among the top Nifty gainers, and Apollo Hospitals, ONGC, NTPC, Bharat Electronics and Coal India among the laggards. ChiniMandi also said the India VIX volatility index rose 2.83% to 15.62.

The rupee firmed. The RBI website showed the FBIL USD/INR reference rate at ₹94.3996 as of 07:30 UTC (1:00 pm IST) on Nov 5. ChiniMandi reported a rupee level of 94.47 per dollar against a previous close of 94.64. The Yahoo Finance quote in the table is measured against Yahoo's Nov 4 daily value, so it can differ from onshore closing rates.

What drove it

Oil's slump after the US midterms

Cheaper crude was the main driver. January Brent futures fell 8.67% on Wednesday, Nov 4, to settle at $94.62, from $103.60 on Nov 3, according to Yahoo Finance data. That is the front-month contract, since December Brent expired on Oct 30. Business Today reported that crude futures had dropped 7.63% on Monday and 8.67% on Wednesday. It also said Nomura saw US–Iran peace negotiating positions as ones that "may reverse" after the midterms. India imports most of its oil, so lower prices ease pressure on the import bill, inflation and the rupee. Brent recovered to $96.16 by 10:06 UTC on Thursday.

Sunday Guardian Live quoted Dr V K Vijayakumar of Geojit Investments, who said the fall in Brent was "among the strongest positives for the Indian market." For how oil feeds into prices and interest rates, see our explainer on oil price shocks. The same move is shifting fortunes across Southeast Asia, as covered in our report on what the Brent slump means for ASEAN oil importers and exporters.

Foreign buying returns

Foreign investors have turned buyers after two months of heavy selling. Business Today, citing NSDL depository data, reported net FPI purchases of ₹14,863 crore so far in November. It said they had net sold ₹34,843 crore in October and ₹35,861 crore in September. Sunday Guardian Live said November inflows had passed ₹17,000 crore, a figure based on provisional exchange data. On Nov 4, foreign institutions bought a net ₹7,284.03 crore while domestic institutions sold a net ₹3,712.23 crore, India TV reported. Figures for Nov 5 had not been published when this brief was written.

Bond yields and the dollar

Devarsh Vakil of HDFC Securities said, according to Business Today, that the 10-year US Treasury yield slid to about 4.89% and that "Investors rotated capital into fixed income." He said the dollar index had its worst daily performance in two months. A weaker dollar and lower US yields tend to make emerging markets such as India more attractive to foreign funds.

September-quarter earnings

Results have also helped. Business Today reported that earnings of the 35 Nifty companies that had reported grew 22% from a year earlier, ahead of Motilal Oswal's 20% estimate. It said Reliance Industries, JSW Steel, ICICI Bank, Coal India and Axis Bank accounted for 59% of the extra profit growth.

Political & policy watch

• US midterm elections: ChiniMandi tied Thursday's rally to the Democrats' gains in the Nov 3 US midterms, and India TV described a "sweeping victory." How much US policy on tariffs or the Middle East changes will depend on legislation the president can still veto.
• US–Iran conflict: Anil Kumar Bhansali of Finrex Treasury Advisors said, according to PSU Watch, that oil was "aggressively erasing the geopolitical risk premium built up from the US-Israel conflict with Iran." Any setback in diplomacy could reverse that.
• Reserve Bank of India: The RBI website showed the policy repo rate at 5.50%. Its next policy decision is due after the December meeting listed below.

What to watch next

• After the Nov 5 close: Provisional FII/DII data for Nov 5, followed by further September-quarter results in the coming sessions.
• Nov 8, 2026 (Sunday): Special Diwali Muhurat trading session. Smallcase reported that NSE had not yet confirmed the timing.
• Nov 10, 2026: NSE equity markets closed for Diwali-Balipratipada, according to the 2026 holiday list published by Smallcase.
• Nov 24, 2026: Markets closed for Guru Nanak Jayanti (Prakash Gurpurb), according to the same list.
• Dec 2–4, 2026: RBI Monetary Policy Committee meeting, according to the RBI's published schedule.
• Dec 8–9, 2026: US Federal Reserve FOMC meeting, with a Summary of Economic Projections, according to the Fed's calendar.

Risk checklist for readers

• Large gap-up openings mean most of a day's gain can happen before the first trade. Index levels at the open and close tell different stories.
• Oil moves fast on geopolitical news. Check the benchmark, contract month and time of any quote: Brent settled sharply lower on Nov 4 but rebounded during Asian hours on Nov 5.
• Provisional FII/DII figures from the exchanges can differ from final NSDL depository data.
• Data vendors sometimes publish different closing levels for the same index. Check the exchange's own figures where possible.
• Rupee rates differ by measure: the FBIL reference rate, the onshore close and international quotes are not the same.
• Holiday weeks such as Diwali can bring thinner trading and sharper moves.

This article is for information only and is not investment advice.