Terrific Thursday for markets: Sensex rallies 1,000 pts, Nifty settles at 25,549; RIL, HDFC Bank top gainers

Indian equity market witnessed strong rally on the monthly expiry day amid fresh buying by investors as the apparent stability of the Middle East ceasefire, which has eased concerns over potential supply chain disruptions, lifted sentiments. The sustained buying by domestic institutional investors and notable gains in banking and auto stocks amid easing inflation concerns and improving liquidity conditions supported the market’s upmove.  

Driven by late rally, the BSE Sensex surged 1,000.36 points, or 1.21%, to close at 83,755.87, while the NSE Nifty50 jumped 304.25 points, or 1.21%, to settle at 25,549. On the other hand, the broader market saw some profit booking, with the Nifty Midcap100 and Nifty Smallcap100 indices sliding by 0.59% and 0.42%, respectively.

The market momentum was also supported by rally in blue-chip stocks such as Reliance Industries , HDFC Bank , Adani Ports , Bharti Airtel , and Bajaj twins- Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv. Shares of RIL, the country’s most valued stock, ended higher by 1.91%, while its market capitalisation crossed ₹20 lakh crore for the first time since September 27, 2024.

The top five gainers on the BSE Sensex pack were Tata Steel, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, Adani Ports, and Eternal (Zomato), rising in the range of 2.4% to 2.65%.

On the other hand, Trent, State Bank of India (SBI), Tech Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Sun Pharma, and Infosys were among losers, ending marginally lower.  

In the sectoral front, except Nifty Realty, IT, and Media, all indices ended in green zone, led by Bank Nifty, which scaled new high in intraday trade. Among others, financial services and oil & gas indices were among notable gainers, rising over 1% each.

Market reflected strong investor confidence: Analysts

"The benchmark index reflected strong investor confidence, underpinned by the apparent stability of the Middle East ceasefire, which has eased concerns over potential supply chain disruptions,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments.

While FIIs continued to pare holdings due to the narrowing yield spread between U.S. and Indian 10-year bonds, DIIs emerged as net buyers, buoyed by improving liquidity conditions and a rebound in domestic consumption. Across the broader market, key sectors such as banking and auto posted notable gains, supported by easing domestic inflation concerns, he added.

“The rally was primarily driven by private sector banks, which had previously shown muted momentum. A key highlight was HDFC Bank, which broke out of its consolidation phase, closing strongly and significantly boosting overall sentiment in the banking space,” said Kunal Kamble, Sr. Technical Research Analyst at Bonanza.

HDFC Bank shares ended 1.9% higher after hitting a fresh 52-week high of ₹2,027.10 in intraday trade. “This is the first time HDFC Bank has surpassed its all-time high and closed higher, acting as a major driver for the banking index. PSU banks also played a supportive role, pushing the overall banking sentiment into positive territory,” Kamble added.

Nifty eyes 25800-26000 by next week

The underlying trend of Nifty remains positive, said Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities. “Having almost reached our upside target of 25,600 levels on Thursday; Nifty could now advance towards the next upper 25800-26000 mark by next week. Immediate support is placed at 25400 levels.”

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, said that the Nifty has given a decisive move above the recent consolidation on the daily chart, indicating growing optimism among traders and investors. With the index breaking above the consolidation zone, the analyst sees no major resistance until the 25,700–25,750 zone.

“With no major resistance until the 25,700–25,750 zone, we expect this rally to extend by another 150–200 points on the upside. On the downside, support is seen around 25,300–25,350," he said.

Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking, expects Nifty to gradually move towards its record high, with a possible pause around the 25,700–25,800 zone. “After consolidating for over five weeks, markets have finally resumed their uptrend…We continue to favor rate-sensitive sectors such as banking, financials, auto, and realty, while recommending a selective approach for other segments."

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