MUMBAI— Indian equities surged Monday, lifted by strong buying in auto, banking and consumer durable stocks, as investors cheered proposed reforms to the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
The Sensex closed at 81,273.75, up 676.09 points or 0.84 percent. The 30-share index opened sharply higher at 81,315.79 and climbed to an intraday high of 81,765.77 before settling near the day’s peak.
The Nifty 50 ended at 24,876.95, gaining 245.65 points or 1 percent.
“The proposed rationalisation of GST is a sentiment booster for the domestic market. Additionally, the recent conclusion of the U.S.–Russia summit without any escalation in geopolitical tensions has helped ease investor anxiety,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
The automobile sector led the rally, with analysts calling it a key beneficiary of tax changes. Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors and other auto names posted sharp gains. Financial stocks including Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, and Bajaj Finserv also advanced.
Among Sensex gainers were Ultratech Cement, Adani Ports, Hindustan Unilever, Trent, Asian Paints, Tata Steel, and Bharti Airtel. On the losing side were ITC, Tech Mahindra, L&T, NTPC, and Infosys.
Sectorally, Nifty Auto soared 1,008 points, or 4.18 percent. Nifty Bank climbed 393 points (0.71 percent), Nifty Financial Services gained 275 points (1.05 percent), and Nifty FMCG rose 647 points (1.19 percent). The Nifty IT index bucked the trend, closing in the red.
Broader markets also rallied. Nifty Next 50 jumped 888 points (1.34 percent), Nifty 100 added 266 points (1.05 percent), Nifty Midcap 100 rose 608 points (1.08 percent), and Nifty Small Cap 100 advanced 242 points (1.38 percent).
Meanwhile, the rupee strengthened by 0.24 paise to close at 87.31 against the U.S. dollar.
“The GST reform move comes as policymakers look to cushion the economy amid lingering pressure on exports from U.S. tariff issues. Rupee range can be seen between 87.00 and 87.75,” said Jateen Trivedi of LKP Securities. (Source: IANS)
