Dalal Street Ends Higher As Sensex Gains 222 Points, Nifty Tests 25,400

The Indian benchmark indices closed higher on Thursday as the Sensex rose nearly 222 points to end at 82,566.37, and the Nifty rose over 79 points to close trade at 25,418.90.

In the 30-share BSE Sensex, among the top gainers were stocks such as Tata Steel, L&T, Axis Bank, Eternal and NTPC. Meanwhile, the laggards included, Kotak Bank, Bajaj Finance, Reliance, Ultra Cement and Infosys.

In the broader markets, the Nifty 100 rose 0.30 per cent, while the Nifty Microcap 250 fell 0.38 per cent. Sectorally, Nifty Healthcare Index declined 0.96 per cent and the Nifty Metal index jumped 3.07 per cent.

Previously, during the morning session, the BSE Sensex rang the opening bell below 82,200, crashing more than 150 points, while the NSE Nifty50 started the day under 25,300, slipping a little over 50 points.

At mid-day, the Sensex and Nifty also significantly recovered on January 29 and were trading higher during afternoon trade amid rise in metals, oil and gas stocks. The Sensex staged a sharp rebound, climbing nearly 950 points from the day’s low, while the Nifty was hovering around the 25,450 level in late afternoon trade.

Markets Rebound Sharply On Sensex F&O Expiry Day

Indian equity benchmarks staged a strong recovery on January 29, a day marked by heightened volatility due to the monthly Sensex F&O expiry. The rebound came despite a rise in market volatility, with India VIX—the volatility gauge—up 2% during the session.

From intraday lows, the Nifty, Sensex and Bank Nifty all climbed more than 1%, reflecting renewed buying interest in the latter half of trade.

Volatility In Focus

Volatility is typically elevated on index expiry days, and January 29 was no exception. Sharp intraday swings were seen across benchmarks as traders adjusted positions ahead of the expiry, before markets found support and rebounded.

FIIs Turn Buyers After Prolonged Selling

Sentiment improved as foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers after 15 consecutive sessions of selling, purchasing shares worth Rs 480 crore in the cash market. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) remained strong buyers, investing Rs 3,360 crore during the session.

Commenting on market dynamics, VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited, said:
“Markets can always surprise. Some positive news/event can trigger a rally in the market. There are rumours of a sudden announcement of a US-India trade deal. If that happens close on the heels of the path breaking India-EU-trade deal, that would be a major boost to Indian economy and corporate earnings in FY27, and therefore, the market will respond positively.”

Global Cues Lift Base Metals

Supporting the rally in metal stocks, benchmark three-month copper prices on the London Metal Exchange jumped 6.7% to a record high of $13,967.50 a tonne, providing a strong tailwind to metal counters on Dalal Street.