Sensex jumps 600 points: What's driving today's rally?
What's the story
The Indian stock market witnessed recovery today, with the Sensex and Nifty opening sharply higher. The surge comes after a five-session losing streak, driven by easing tensions between Iran and the US, falling crude oil prices, and other positive cues. At 9:30am, Sensex was up 578.94 points or 0.76% at 76,638.71 while Nifty gained over 170 points to trade above 23,944.
Market boost
Market capitalization surges by nearly ₹4 lakh crore
The sharp gains in the Sensex and Nifty have added nearly ₹4 lakh crore to the total market capitalization of all companies listed on BSE, taking it to ₹479 lakh crore.
IndiGo, Eternal, and Asian Paints shares jumped as much as 3% to lead gains on the Sensex.
Infosys, Bajaj Finance, Hindustan Unilever, Tech Mahindra, TCS, and Kotak Mahindra Bank shares gained up to 2%.
Market trends
Broader markets also gain
The broader markets also followed the upward trend, with the Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 gaining as much as 1% each.
India VIX, a measure of market volatility, fell over 3% to 13.55 in early trade. This indicates an improvement in investor sentiment.
Almost all sectoral indices were trading in the green with Nifty FMCG and Nifty IT rising over 1% each to lead gains.
Market drivers
Iran-US tensions ease
The easing of tensions between the US and Iran has given rise to hopes of a diplomatic solution, which could de-escalate the conflict and allow shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
This comes as President Donald Trump has decided to pause attacks for more time for diplomacy.
Meanwhile, falling crude oil prices have also contributed significantly to the market's positive performance today.