Nifty in October 2026 rose 1.91% while most stocks fell

Nifty in October 2026: a gain on top, losses underneath

Nifty in October 2026 rose 1.91%, ending the last session on 30 October 2026 at 23,053.10. That headline hides a rough month for the wider market. Across the Nifty 500, 374 stocks finished the month lower and only 120 finished higher, so far more names lost ground than gained while the benchmark rose.

The Sensex did better than the Nifty and rose 2.73% to 74,459.53. Bank Nifty barely moved: it rose 0.10% to close at 54,686.95, after trading as high as 56,065.50 and as low as 53,626.15 during the month.

The Nifty spent October between 22,179.90 and 23,175.25 and closed close to the top of that range.

How an index rises when most stocks fall

The Nifty 50 and the Sensex are weighted by free-float market value. A handful of very large companies carry much of the weight, so they can pull the index up even when the typical stock is falling. The breadth figures above are a count of stocks, where a small company counts the same as the largest one.

For anyone holding mid-sized or smaller companies, the breadth number is a better guide to how October felt than the index close.

Sectors: IT stood apart

Information Technology was the strongest sector, with its Nifty 500 stocks averaging +8.41%. Among the sectors shown below it was the only one to end the month higher. Construction was the weakest at an average of -10.06%, with chemicals and metals and mining not far behind.

These are simple averages of the stocks in each sector, not index returns, so one big mover in a small sector can shift the figure.

Top gainers of the month

IT names filled most of the top of the list. L&T Technology Services Ltd. was the best performer in the Nifty 500 with a move of +32.57%. Zensar Technologies and Wipro also made the top five, alongside International Gemological Institute and Ather Energy.

Top losers of the month

Swiggy Ltd. was the weakest stock in the Nifty 500 with a move of -29.39%. Yes Bank, Emmvee Photovoltaic Power, Sumitomo Chemical India and Aegis Vopak Terminals completed the bottom five.

October 2026 IPO list: what listed

The primary market stayed busy. 46 IPOs listed during October, a mix of mainboard issues and SME offerings. The table below shows listings by first-day gain. The biggest mainboard name was Jio Platforms; Tonbo Imaging India, Orient Cables and Moneyview were among the mainboard issues that listed well above their issue price.

A listing gain is the difference between the issue price and the price on the first day of trading. It says nothing about where a stock went after that.

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