Sensex, Nifty surge up to 1% amid easing oil prices, US-Iran tensions; ITC, IndiGo, Bajaj Finance lead
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Indian benchmark indices opened higher on Monday, tracking firm global cues after oil prices tumbled on hopes of easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
The BSE Sensex opened 789 points, or 1%, higher at 78,883.34, while the NSE Nifty 50 started the session at 24,572.70, up 189 points. By around 9:25 am, the Sensex was trading 475 points, or 0.61%, higher at 78,569.54, while the Nifty gained 149 points, or 0.61%, to 24,532.55.
Broader markets also traded in the green, with the Nifty Midcap 100 rising 0.45% and the Nifty Smallcap 100 advancing 0.94%, indicating broad-based buying.
Among sectoral indices, Nifty Metal led the gains, rising 1.04%, followed by FMCG (0.89%), Financial Services (0.68%), PSU Bank (0.64%), Auto (0.58%), IT (0.45%) and Oil & Gas (0.46%). On the flip side, Pharma slipped 0.24%, Healthcare declined 0.18%, while Media emerged as the top laggard, falling 1.54%.
On the Sense pack, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, ITC, IndiGo, TCS, Larsen & Toubro and Infosys were among the top gainers, climbing up to 2.7%. In contrast, Sun Pharma fell over 2%, while Maruti Suzuki declined 1.5%.
The positive opening followed a sharp fall in global crude oil prices after US President Donald Trump refrained from launching fresh military strikes on Iran and instead signalled the start of negotiations with Tehran. Brent crude dropped as much as 7.3% to $81.55 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 5.4% to $80.10 a barrel, boosting risk sentiment across global markets.
US equity futures also traded higher, with Dow Jones futures gaining around 0.5% and S&P 500 futures advancing 0.6%, reflecting optimism over a possible diplomatic resolution to the West Asia conflict.
Asian markets, however, presented a mixed picture. Japan's Nikkei 225 fell 1.4% and South Korea's Kospi tumbled 4.8%, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Taiwan's Weighted Index posted modest gains.
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, said the market appears poised for a breakout above the 24,500 level on the Nifty.
"The market is set for a breakout above 24,500 Nifty and has the potential to sustain above that level. The decline in Brent crude to below $84, the good progress in monsoon in July and FIIs turning buyers are positive triggers for the market," he said.
Vijayakumar added that India's growth momentum remains resilient despite global headwinds, supported by the fiscal and monetary stimulus announced in 2025. Better-than-expected credit growth, healthy automobile sales and stronger-than-anticipated first-quarter earnings indicate that FY27 earnings growth could exceed initial expectations.
He also noted that strong inflows through FCNR(B), ECB and OFCB routes have helped stabilise the rupee, facilitating the return of foreign institutional investors to Indian equities.
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