Markets rally for fourth straight day as Sensex jumps 899 points, crossing 76,000 mark 

Benchmark indices surged for the fourth consecutive session on Thursday, with the Sensex closing above the 76,000 mark for the first time since February, driven by the US Federal Reserve’s dovish stance and improved market sentiment.

The BSE Sensex ended 899.01 points or 1.19 per cent higher at 76,348.06, while the Nifty 50 closed 283.05 points or 1.24 per cent higher at 23,190.65. The rally was broad-based. with all major sectoral indices trading in positive territory, as the markets took comfort from the Fed’s unchanged projection for two rate cuts in 2025.

Bharti Airtel led the gainers on the NSE, jumping 4.08 per cent to close at ₹1,704. Other top gainers included Titan (3.47 per cent), Eicher Motors (2.61 per cent), Bajaj Auto (2.57 per cent), and Britannia (2.57 per cent). On the losing side, IndusInd Bank fell 1.11 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance (-0.59 per cent), Trent (-0.30 per cent), and Shriram Finance (-0.25 per cent).

The market breadth remained firmly positive with 2,410 stocks advancing against 1,606 declines on the BSE, while 129 stocks remained unchanged. Sixty-nine stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 106 touched their 52-week lows. Eleven stocks hit the upper circuit, while five hit the lower circuit.

“Benchmark indices got a Fed booster shot on Thursday extending gains for the fourth straight session, after the US Fed kept the forecast for two rate cuts in 2025 intact despite inflation risks from Trump’s trade war,” said Satish Chandra Aluri of Lemonn Markets Desk.

The markets found strength after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged and maintained its projection for two rate cuts this year, despite raising its inflation forecast to 2.7 per cent from 2.5 per cent earlier, while downgrading the US growth outlook to 1.7 per cent from 2.1 per cent.

“Fed chair Powell mentioned the ‘unusually elevated uncertainty’ to describe the current macroeconomic outlook given Trump’s trade war and shifting geopolitical developments. Markets took the usage of the word ‘transitory’ by Powell to describe any disorderly rise in inflation due to trade shocks as a signal that Fed may not act forcefully to hike rates,” Aluri added.

The Indian rupee strengthened for the seventh consecutive day, rising 0.07 against the US dollar to close at 86.34. “Rupee traded slightly higher by Rs 0.07 at 86.34, supported by dollar index weakness after the Fed’s policy hinted at a slightly lower rate outlook, boosting overall market sentiment,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst at LKP Securities.

According to Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, “Consistent falls of the US dollar index (DXY) have reduced the intensity of FII selling, while DII buying continues to be strong, thus triggering the recent upside. Supportive domestic data indicating a MoM rise in economic activity and the view that more rate cuts are envisaged during the year are adding to the attractiveness of equity.”

From a technical perspective, Shrikant Chouhan, Head, Equity Research at Kotak Securities noted, “The market successfully cleared the 50-day SMA (Simple Moving Average) level and the 23,000/75700 resistance zone, which is largely positive. Additionally, it formed a bullish candle on daily charts, supporting a further uptrend from the current levels.”

The Nifty Bank index rose 0.72 per cent to close at 50,062.85, crossing the psychologically important 50,000 mark. Nifty Financial Services also gained 0.70 per cent to end at 24,309.00. Nifty Next 50 and Nifty Midcap Select indices rose 0.57 per cent and 0.11 per cent, respectively.

“Nifty closed above its 50-day EMA for the first time after February 5, 2025. Nifty is in continuation of a short-term uptrend and now marching towards the next resistance of 200 days EMA, placed near 23400 levels,” said Nandish Shah, Deputy Vice-President at HDFC Securities.

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities, added, “The Nifty has given a falling trendline breakout on the daily chart, suggesting a bullish trend reversal. Additionally, it has been sustaining above the 21EMA for the past three days, confirming a short-term uptrend.”

The volatility index, India VIX, cooled off by 5.22 per cent to 12.60, indicating declining market volatility as investor confidence improved.

While the markets maintain their positive momentum, analysts advise caution. “We believe that the overall market sentiment is bullish, but buying on dips and selling on rallies would be the ideal strategy for day traders,” Chouhan said.