Indian equity markets extended gains for a third consecutive session on Tuesday, with the benchmark Sensex jumping 615 points to 76,301 and the Nifty rising 149 points to 23,588. The rally was driven by easing crude oil prices, foreign institutional investor buying and strong corporate earnings, particularly from Reliance Industries.
Benchmark indices opened higher and continued to gain throughout the session. The 30-share BSE Sensex settled at 76,301.63, up 614.66 points, while the 50-share NSE Nifty closed at 23,588.55, up 149.80 points. On Monday, the Sensex had surged over 1,200 points to settle at 75,692.78 and the Nifty had closed above 23,440, marking five-week highs.
Reliance Industries was among the top gainers following its earnings announcement. Brent crude traded around $104.8 per barrel, down from recent highs, as Qatar-mediated exchanges between the United States and Iran raised hopes of progress toward ending the Middle East conflict and restoring normal energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Foreign Institutional Investors were net buyers, purchasing equities worth ₹3,114.68 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. The upbeat outlook also found support from a sharp correction in global crude oil prices, offering some relief on the macroeconomic front.
Asian markets were mixed. South Korea's Kospi declined amid persistent concerns over heavy investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, while Taiwan's Taiex fell over 1.21% to 44,376.04. The Japan stock market was closed on Tuesday due to a national public holiday, Culture Day.
Wall Street ended mostly lower on Monday, with the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 in negative territory, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average settled higher. Investors are now looking toward the U.S. mid-term elections as the next major global trigger, with implications for fiscal policy, trade and the Iran conflict.
Market participants said circumstances are ideal for the continuation of the ongoing rally, with a decline in Brent crude, continuing flow of good Q2 results and FIIs turning buyers having the potential to accelerate the ongoing trend. The 11.6 per cent surge in a mega cap stock in one day is very rare, but this happened in RIL yesterday.
