Mumbai, May 12 – Indian stock markets surged to historic highs on Monday, recording their biggest-ever single-day gains in absolute terms, as easing geopolitical tensions and a breakthrough global trade development ignited investor confidence.
Sensex and Nifty Soar Nearly 4%
The BSE Sensex skyrocketed by 2,975.43 points or 3.74%, closing at 82,429.90, its highest level in over seven months. The index had touched an intraday peak of 82,495.97, rising 3,041.5 points or 3.82%.Likewise, the NSE Nifty zoomed 916.70 points or 3.82% to settle at 24,924.70, after hitting a record intraday high of 24,944.80. These gains surpassed the previous single-day records set on June 3, 2024, when the Sensex had jumped 2,507 points and the Nifty by 733 points.
The rally was driven by strong buying across sectors, especially IT, metal, realty, and technology stocks.
Ceasefire and Global Trade Optimism Lift Markets
Investor sentiment was buoyed by the ceasefire agreement between India and Pakistan, which followed the conclusion of Operation Sindoor—India’s targeted military operation to dismantle terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The de-escalation of hostilities was seen as a significant step toward regional stability.Adding further fuel to the rally, the United States and China announced a 90-day suspension of high tariffs after talks in Geneva. The US agreed to slash tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, while China reduced tariffs on American imports from 125% to 10%.
"The confluence of positive geopolitical and economic developments sparked the strongest daily market rally in recent times," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services. He noted that rising FII inflows and renewed retail investor participation also played key roles.
Religare Broking's Ajit Mishra highlighted the encouraging updates on the US-China trade deal as a key confidence booster during Monday’s session.
Sectoral and Stock-Wise Performance
Among the Sensex constituents, Infosys surged 7.91%, leading the rally. Other major gainers included HCL Tech, Tata Steel, Eternal, Tech Mahindra, TCS, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, NTPC, Reliance Industries, and Bajaj Finance.Only Sun Pharma and IndusInd Bank ended in the red.
Broader markets also rallied strongly, with Midcap and Smallcap indices climbing nearly 4%, mirroring the upbeat sentiment.
Global Market Impact and FII Activity
Pakistan’s benchmark KSE-100 index also rallied over 9% earlier in the day amid the easing of regional tensions.Asian markets ended higher, with South Korea’s Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225, Shanghai’s SSE Composite, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng posting gains. European markets were trading in the green, while US indices had ended mixed on Friday.
Brent crude oil climbed 2.88% to USD 65.75 per barrel amid renewed risk appetite.
On Friday, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) had offloaded shares worth Rs 3,798.71 crore, following days of net buying. That day, markets had tumbled over 1% due to escalating Indo-Pak tensions.
Outlook
Prashanth Tapse of Mehta Equities noted that the ceasefire news shifted investor sentiment decisively toward equities, pushing aside traditional safe havens like gold. "With global tariff talks on a smoother path, equities could continue gaining traction," he added.The market’s sharp rebound signals renewed optimism and highlights investor sensitivity to geopolitical and global trade cues. The coming sessions will be closely watched for confirmation of this bullish trend.
