Sensex soars by 350 points, Nifty above 25,100; M&M shares lead, Nestle drags

Tuesday's trading session started on a positive note, despite the Gift Nifty index remaining subdued. The BSE Sensex soared by 350 points or 0.43%, at 82,120, while the NSE Nifty 50 was above the 25,100 mark, at 25,168, rising by 0.40%. 

Out of the 50 constituents of the Nifty index, 43 advanced, while 6 declined and one remained unchanged. On the BSE front, 27 gained, and 3 declined. 

Mahindra and Mahindra emerged as a top gainer, rising by 1.39%, bringing its share price to ₹3568. Trailing behind were NTPC and Axis Bank, advancing by 1.17% and 1.13% respectively. NTPC recently announced that it has begun commercial operations in Gujarat with a 25 MW solar power project.

Meanwhile, Nestle India was the major laggard in the early morning trade, slipping by 0.61%, with shares at ₹1203.90 apiece. Asian Paints and IndusInd Bank followed, each dipping by 0.50%. 

Amongst individual stocks, Adani Enterprises was up by 0.65% as the company received a Letter of Award (LoA) from the National Highways Logistics Management (NHLML) to build the ropeway project to connect Sonprayag with Kedarnath. 

Maruti Suzuki's shares were also up by 0.36% as the auto company launched its new flagship SUV, Victoris at ₹10.50 lakh.

All sectors except Nifty PSU Bank were trading in the positive. Nifty Media was the top gainer, rallying by 1.09%, followed by Nifty Auto, which rose by 0.66%. Nifty PSU Bank was marginally down by 0.04%.  

The broader markets continued to extend their rally and were in the green at the time of reporting. The Nifty Midcap 50 added 0.24% and the Nifty Smallcap 50 added 0.59%. 

India's volatility index or VIX marginally cooled down by 0.02% to stand at 10.40. 

Investors' positive sentiment in today's trade could be attributed to the US markets closing higher, with the Nasdaq and S&P 500 indices notching new highs. 

The American indices' rally is fueled by the upcoming meeting of the Federal Reserve where interest rate cuts could be announced after tracking a weakened job market and cooler-than-expected consumer price index (CPI).