The Indian stock market ended the week on a bullish note, with street cheering a sharper-than-expected interest rate cut by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). After opening flat in the morning, the markets picked up pace soon after the RBI’s policy announcement and closed significantly higher.
The Sensex ended the day up by 734.19 points or 0.90% at 82,176.23, while the Nifty wrapped up the session at 25,003.05, gaining 252.15 points or 1.02%. The Nifty Bank, too, notched a fresh record, closing the day at 56,578.40, up by 1.47%.
Let’s break down the key highlights that drove market action today:
Trending stocks gainers today
Share price of Muthoot Finance surged over 6% in Friday’s trade, leading the gainers pack, while Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation rose more than 5%. MCX also saw strong buying interest, jumping over 4%. KFIN Technologies and Astec Lifesciences posted gains of around 3% each. Meanwhile, One97 Communications (Paytm) edged up nearly 2% by the end of the session.
RBI cuts repo rate by 50 bps
The biggest headline of the day came from RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra, who announced a 50 basis point (bps) cut in the repo rate, bringing it down from 6% to 5.5%. This marks the third rate cut in 2025, with a total reduction of 100 bps since February. The central bank also revised the Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) to 5.25% and the Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) and Bank Rate to 5.75%.
CRR cut to inject more liquidity
The RBI announced a phased reduction in the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR), cutting it by 100 bps to 3%. This is expected to release additional funds into the banking system in four tranches, starting from September 6.
Gold loan rules relaxed for small borrowers
Easing credit access, especially for households and small-ticket borrowers, the RBI proposed increasing the Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio on gold loans from 75% to 85% for loans up to Rs 2.5 lakh. Malhotra said that final regulations would be released “either today or by Monday.”
Following the announcement, gold loan-related stocks rallied.
Auto and Realty stocks rev up
With borrowing costs now lower, sectors such as auto and real estate gained ground. The Nifty Auto and Nifty Realty indices rose sharply.
Ashok Leyland jumped nearly 3%, Hero MotoCorp gained over 2%, and other auto names like Bajaj Auto and Motherson also moved up. On the real estate front, Godrej Properties, DLF, Oberoi Realty, Prestige, and Sobha saw gains between 4-5%.
Nifty Bank hits fresh record high
Banking stocks led from the front as the RBI’s twin moves repo and CRR cuts. The Nifty Bank touched an all-time high of 56,695 during intraday trade.
IDFC First Bank was the biggest gainer in the pack, up more than 3%, followed by strong moves in Axis Bank and Bank of Baroda.