Markets: With positive US signals, Indian bourses zoom over 2.5%; rupee also appreciates
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: With US President Donald Trump slashing tariffs on Indian goods from 25% to 18%, the likelihood of the two countries’ bilateral trade agreement (BTA) brightening, and eased tension in the Middle East, India’s equity markets zoomed over 2.5% on Tuesday.
Benchmark indices held strong gains through the midday session on Tuesday, with the Sensex ending at 83,739.13, up 2,072.67 points (2.54%), and the Nifty closed at 25,727.55, higher by 639.15 points or 2.55%.
Most brokerages in India and abroad have given a thumbs up to the South Asian country after some of the BTA details emerged on Monday, even as they await the finer points.
Markets witnessed a sharp rally on Tuesday, with the Sensex marking its biggest single-day gain in terms of points since November 22, 2024, when it had jumped 1,961.32 points. FPIs also returned as big buyers thanks to brightening Indo-US trade deal.
The Nifty50 surged, driven by the landmark decisions that significantly eased tariff concerns. The Nifty, in fact, opened higher at 26,308.05 and rose further to 26,341.20, almost near its all-time high of 26,373.20, before ending slightly below the peak.
According to exchange provisional data, FPIs pumped in Rs. 5,426.24 crore worth shares on Tuesday after pulling out nearly Rs. 30,000 crores in 2026 so far.
The breakthrough came as the US agreed to reduce reciprocal tariffs on Indian imports from 25% to 18% and withdrew the additional 25% punitive levy linked to Indo-Russian oil trade, implying a sharp 32% reduction in the overall tariff burden.
Market breadth turned decisively positive with 3,279 stocks advancing against 1,015 declines on the BSE, while 121 stocks touched 52-week highs and 117 hit 52-week lows. The Nifty Midcap 100 surged 1,639.50 points or 2.84 per cent to 59,307.10, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 jumped 465.60 points or 2.82 per cent to 16,988.95, reflecting strong broad-based participation.
Sectoral gains were led by realty stocks, which rallied nearly 4.8%, followed by infrastructure, energy, pharma and banking. The Nifty Financial Services index gained 875.05 points or 3.27% to 27,674.05, while the Nifty Bank rose 1,422.30 points or 2.43% to 60,041.30 after touching a fresh all-time high of 61,764 during the trading session.
Among Nifty50 constituents, Adani Enterprises emerged as the top gainer, surging 10.58% to close at Rs. 2,206.50, followed by Adani Ports, which jumped 9.19% to Rs. 1,532. Jio Financial Services climbed 8.15% to Rs. 264, Bajaj Finance advanced 6.67% to Rs. 964, and InterGlobe Aviation gained 5.57% to Rs. 4,948
Only four stocks in the Nifty50 ended in the red, with Tech Mahindra leading losses with a marginal decline of 0.66% to Rs. 1,712.70, followed by Bharat Electronics (-0.16% to Rs. 438.40), SBI Life Insurance (-0.08% to Rs. 1,999.40), and Nestle India (-0.07% to RS. 1,307.40).
The Indian rupee also strengthened sharply, appreciating by Rs. 1.28 or nearly 1.40%.
Despite the strong opening, however, both key indices witnessed sharp intraday volatility.
In commodities, gold and silver showed early signs of stabilisation after last week’s selloff.
Looking ahead, market participants expect continued positive momentum in the near term. However, analysts cautioned that holding the 25,400-25,500 zone will be critical for the Nifty, with the upcoming RBI monetary policy announcement is likely to keep volatility elevated.
