Sensex jumps 521 points, Nifty closes above 24,400 on banking, realty gains

Equity benchmarks ended higher for the fourth straight day on Monday, led by strong buying in blue-chip banking, realty and defence counters amid subdued crude oil prices, easing geopolitical tensions and growing expectations of a less hawkish stance from the USFederal Reserve. Asian and European markets showcased mixed trends.

“The calmness in the West Asia region and hopes for a relatively steady corporate earnings season kept investor mood optimistic, although overall sentiment remains cautious,” Ankur Punj, MD & Business Head at Equirus Wealth, said.

According to Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, continued softness in crude prices would support inflation, the current account balance, oil marketing companies’ profitability, and overall macro stability.

He noted that financials gained on expectations of healthy private bank earnings, autos benefited from strong volume trends and improving demand outlook, while realty remained supported by resilient housing demand.

BSE Sensex rose 521.16 points, or 0.67 per cent, to close at 78,285.07, after hitting an intraday high of 78,398.06. NSE Nifty 50 gained 159.50 points, or 0.66 per cent, to settle at 24,430.35.

In the last four trading sessions, both the benchmarks have gained over 2 per cent each.

The broader market also participated in the rally, with both the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 ending in positive territory.

On the sectoral front, realty, consumer durables, auto and oil & gas outperformed, while media, PSU banks, IT and cement closed lower.

Defence stocks outperformed after the Defence Acquisition Council approved capital acquisition proposals worth ₹52,000 crore. Zen Technologies, Dynamatic Technologies, Paras Defence and Data Patterns outperformed.

In the midcap segment, Dixon Technologies, Radico, Hitachi Energy and GE Vernova T&D gained between 3 per cent and 7 per cent. Groww, MCX, Bank of India, Suzlon and Bank of Maharashtra were among the top losers. In the small-cap space, Swan Corp, Manappuram Finance, Welspun Corp and Aegis Logistics advanced, while Zensar Technologies, Ola Electric and Pine Labs weighed on the index.

Market breadth remained neutral. A total of 3,462 stocks were traded on the NSE, of which 1,578 advanced, 1,769 declined, and 115 remained unchanged. 146 stocks reached 52-week highs, and 41 hit 52-week lows. In addition, 114 stocks hit the upper circuit and 99 hit the lower circuit.

Abhinav Tiwari, Research Analyst at Bonanza, said management commentary, future guidance, crude oil prices, foreign investor flows and global interest rate expectations are likely to drive market direction. He added that until earnings provide greater clarity, stock-specific movements are expected to dominate.