Sensex reclaims 80k mark; Nifty surges over 1 pc after BJP-led Mahayuti's win in Maharashtra

MUMBAI: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty surged more than 1 per cent on Monday, helped by a rally in blue-chip stocks and the BJP pulling off a stunning performance in Maharashtra, winning a record number of seats to propel the party-led ruling Mahayuti alliance to a landslide victory.

Besides, heavy buying in capital goods, energy and banking stocks also boosted investor sentiments, traders said.

Extending its previous day's sharp rally, the BSE benchmark Sensex jumped 992.74 points or 1.25 per cent to settle at 80,109.85. During the day, it soared 1,355.97 points or 1.71 per cent to 80,473.08.

As many as 2,697 stocks advanced, 1,352 declined, and 165 remained unchanged.

The NSE Nifty surged 314.65 points or 1.32 per cent to 24,221.90.

"The ability of the market to surprise was evident in the 557 points spurt in the Nifty on Friday. This sharp upswing will continue today assisted by the super NDA performance in Maharashtra. The political message from this election is huge and highly positive from the market perspective," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said.

From the 30-share Sensex pack, Larsen & Toubro, State Bank of India, Adani Ports, Reliance Industries, Power Grid, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank were the biggest gainers.

On the other hand, JSW Steel, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Maruti, Asian Paints and HCL Tech were the laggards.

Online food delivery giant Zomato will become a part of the benchmark BSE Sensex, replacing JSW Steel from December 23.

This is part of the latest reconstitution announced by Asia Index Private Ltd, a subsidiary of BSE.

The BSE smallcap gauge jumped 1.86 per cent and the midcap index went up by 1.61 per cent.

All sectoral indices ended higher. Industrials soared 3.29 per cent, capital goods (3.27 per cent), oil & gas (3.26 per cent), energy (2.56 per cent), realty (2.22 per cent), bankex (2.06 per cent), financial services (1.89 per cent) and healthcare (0.97 per cent).

"Major state election results lifted market sentiment and increased the scope of stability in government spending in H2FY25 to meet the capex target. The rally was broad-based, while capex-linked sectors like infra, capital goods, and industrials outperformed in expectation of a surge in new order inflows. The prospects of H2 remain positive due to a good monsoon, festival, and marriage season, which could ease the impact of earnings downgrades that happened in Q2," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said.

The BJP on Saturday pulled off a stunning performance in Maharashtra, winning a record number of seats to propel the party-led ruling Mahayuti alliance to a landslide victory, while the INDIA bloc stormed back to power in Jharkhand on the back of a spectacular showing by the JMM.

In Asian markets, Seoul and Tokyo settled higher, while Shanghai and Hong Kong ended in the red.

European markets were trading in the green. The US markets ended in positive territory on Friday.

"Shares climbed in Europe and Asia on Monday, tracking last week’s gains on Wall Street, as investors viewed US President-elect Donald Trump’s choice of billionaire investor Scott Bessent as his nominee for Treasury secretary as a relatively market-friendly choice that could inject more stability into the US economy and financial markets.

"China’s central bank kept the interest rate on the one-year medium-term lending facility unchanged at 2 per cent," Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research, HDFC Securities, said.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.40 per cent to USD 74.87 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,278.37 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

The BSE benchmark jumped 1,961.32 points or 2.54 per cent to settle at 79,117.11 on Friday. The Nifty soared 557.35 points or 2.39 per cent to 23,907.25.