Sensex, Nifty gain nearly 4% each; ₹16 lakh crore added to m-cap — 10 key highlights from Indian stock market today

Indian stock market: Benchmark indices – the Sensex and the Nifty 50 – gained nearly 4% each to post the best single-day rally in four years on Monday, May 12, as a host of positive news, from India-Pakistan ceasefire to US-China trade deal, lifted investor sentiment.

The BSE Sensex settled the day 2,975 points or 3.74% higher at 82,430. It hit the day's high of 82,495.97, putting it 4% away from its all-time peak of 85,978. Meanwhile, NSE's barometer Nifty 50, after hitting the day's peak of 24,944.80, settled the session at 24,924.70, up 916.70 points or 3.82%.

Meanwhile, the overall market capitalisation of all companies listed on the BSE swelled by ₹1,6,06,576 lakh crore to ₹4,32,47,426.73 lakh crore today. The figure stood at ₹4,16,40,850.46 as of Friday's close.

The broader markets also rejoiced. BSE Midcap index jumped 3.85% to settle at 43,731.60, while the BSE Smallcap index soared 4.18% to end at 48,693.75.

Indian stock market: 10 key highlights from the day

Here are 10 key highlights from the stock market today:

1. Why did the stock market clock best day in 4 years today?

Easing geopolitical tensions and a cooling off of the trade war between the world's two largest economies – the US and China – helped drive the Indian stock markets higher on Monday.

Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking, said, “Markets opened the week on a strong footing, rallying nearly 4%, driven by supportive global and domestic cues. The key trigger was the announcement of a ceasefire between India and Pakistan over the weekend, signaling easing geopolitical tensions. Adding to the positive sentiment were encouraging updates on the US-China trade deal, which further boosted investor confidence as the session progressed.”

The easing of geopolitical concerns and progress on global trade talks brought significant relief to the markets, reflected in a sharp drop in the India VIX volatility index, he said.

All major sectors contributed to the rally, with IT, realty, and metals leading the gains. The broader markets also mirrored this strength, each advancing close to 4%, Mishra added.

Commenting on market outlook, Mishra said, “Technically, the sharp rise in the Nifty marks a continuation of the uptrend following a three-week consolidation phase.” Having crossed the previous swing high of around 24,857, the index is now poised to inch towards the 25,200 level, while the 24,400–24,600 zone is expected to offer strong support on any dip, he observed.

2. Top Nifty 50 gainers today

In the Nifty 50 pack of stocks, barring two stocks, all ended in the green. Adani Enterprises emerged as the top performer, surging 7.7% today. Infosys also recorded strong gains of 7.69%. It was followed by Shriram Finance, Trent and Wipro that gained between 6-7% each. IndusInd Bank and Sun Pharma were the only losers among the Nifty 50 stocks.

3. Sectoral snapshot: All indices gain

All major sectoral indices gained today, including the Nifty Pharma index, which suffered hefty losses in the early trading session. Nifty IT emerged as the top performer, surging 6.7% as a US-China trade deal dimmed fears of a recession in the world's largest economy. Nifty Realty, Nifty Metal, and Nifty Auto were among the other top gainers. Nifty Pharma gained just 0.15% as reports of a possible cut in drug prices in the US by Donald Trump hit the shares of pharma exporters today.

4. Most active stocks in terms of volume

Yes Bank (52.75 crore), Vodafone Idea (41.42 crore), Reliance Power (16.48 crore), Suzlon Energy (8.95 crore) and GLT Infra (8.04 crore) were among the top volume-led movers in today's trading session.

5. Nine stocks gain 20% today

Amid a strong rally in benchmark indices, nine stocks surged 20% in trade today. Birla Corporation, NDR Auto Components, Man Industries, Ginni Filaments, NDA Securities, Inspirisys Solutions, GACM Technologies, High Energy Batteries and IFGL Refractories were the nine stocks that rose 20% today.

6. Stocks at 52-week high

Some 47 stocks hit 52-week high levels in trade today. ICICI Bank, APL Apollo, Force Motors, Nazara Technologies, UPL and Ceat were among the key companies that touched 52-week highs.

7. Stocks at 52-week lows

Despite today's rally, as many as 24 stocks hit 52-week highs today, including Gensol Engineering, AGS Transact, Century Enka, KBC Global and Eros Media.

8. Advance-decline ratio favours buyers

Advance-decline ratio leaned heavily in favour of the buyers, as 2614 stocks advanced and 329 stocks declined on the NSE. With this, the advance-decline ratio was nearly 4:1, meaning at least four stocks rose for every one that declined.

9. Stocks that hit upper circuits 

322 stocks hit upper circuit limits today. Some of the prominent names included Zaggle Prepaid, Man Industries, Birla Corporation, Senco Gold, ITI and 63 Moons Tech.

10. Stocks that touched lower circuits

Some 35 stocks hit lower circuit limits today, including Gensol Engineering, JP Associates, Housing Development and Infrastructure and SKIL Infrastructure.

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