Equity investors become richer by Rs 15.18 lakh crore in five days of market rally
New Delhi, Dec 5: Investors' wealth surged Rs 15.18 lakh crore in five days of market rally that took the BSE benchmark Sensex up over 3 per cent.
In the past five trading days, the BSE barometer has jumped 2,722.12 points or 3.44 per cent.
Rallying for the fifth day running on Thursday, the 30-share benchmark Sensex jumped 809.53 points or 1 per cent to settle at 81,765.86. During the day, it soared 1,361.41 points or 1.68 per cent to 82,317.74.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms surged Rs 15,18,926.69 crore to Rs 4,58,17,010.11 crore (USD 5.41 trillion) in the last five sessions.
The NSE Nifty surged 240.95 points or 0.98 per cent to settle at 24,708.40 on Thursday.
"Nifty surged for the 5th straight day, closing 0.98 per cent higher at 24,708, despite intraday volatility. It joined global markets in optimism, following new highs on the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq. Bank Nifty also gained 0.63 per cent, while IT stocks rallied 1.95 per cent," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.
From the 30-share pack, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Titan, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, Tech Mahindra and HCL Technologies were the biggest gainers.
NTPC, Asian Paints and IndusInd Bank were the laggards.
As many as 2,141 stocks advanced while 1,825 declined and 117 remained unchanged on the BSE.
"Indian equities staged a strong rebound during the day, fuelled by robust buying in heavyweight stocks across various sectors and positive market sentiment. The upmove was further supported by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs), who turned net buyers, contributing over Rs 5,000 crore in the past two sessions," Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd, said.
Among sectoral indices, BSE Focused IT soared the most 1.96 per cent, while teck jumped 1.92 per cent, IT by 1.81 per cent and telecommunication 0.95 per cent. Bankex (0.68 per cent) and consumer durables (0.66 per cent) also advanced.
BSE services and realty emerged as the laggards.
The BSE midcap gauge climbed 0.27 per cent and the smallcap index went up by 0.16 per cent.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 1,797.60 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
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Oppn, X users flag concerns over US envoy Sergio Gor’s visit to Army’s western command
New Delhi: A visit by the US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, to Chandigarh on Monday has triggered sharp criticism from opposition leaders and social media users, raising questions about national security and foreign policy.
On X, Ambassador Gor announced his visit, writing, “Just landed in Chandigarh. Looking forward to visiting the Western Command of the Indian Army.”
Just landed in Chandigarh. Looking forward to visiting the Western Command of the Indian Army
— Ambassador Sergio Gor (@USAmbIndia) February 16, 2026
Soon after, opposition voices questioned the broader implications of the visit. Congress Kerala, in a post, commented, “Why so much panic? We’ve already seen Pakistan's ISI getting access to Pathankot Airbase with this government's blessings. Didn't they say then ‘Modi ne kiya ho to kuch soch samajh kar kiya hoga?’ Compared to that, this is very small.”
Why so much panic? We’ve already seen Pakistan's ISI getting access to Pathankot Airbase with this government's blessings.
— Congress Kerala (@INCKerala) February 16, 2026
Didn't they say then "Modi ne kiya ho to kuch soch samajh kar kiya hoga?"
Compared to that, this is very small. pic.twitter.com/gNNuAGQBPC
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi also weighed in, writing, “Since India’s national strategic interests are now tied to what US wants India to do, this visit seems to sync with that.”
She further added, “India’s history will remember the de-escalation announcement between India and Pak was announced on social media by the US President before Indians got to know from their own government. US Ambassador is doing the job for his nation, who is doing for us? The answer is blowing in the wind.”
Since India’s national strategic interests are now tied to what US wants India to do, this visit seems to sync with that. India’s history will remember the de-escalation announcement between India and Pak was announced on social media by the US President before Indians got to… pic.twitter.com/rYMq5NhJHA
— Priyanka Chaturvedi🇮🇳 (@priyankac19) February 16, 2026
The visit comes against the backdrop of the growing US-India defence partnership.
Writer and political analyst @rajuparulekar commented on ‘X’, “East India Company is back!”
“Is it allowed for an ambassador to visit any army unit in india?” asked another user.
Several X users expressed concerns over the appropriateness of the visit.
One asked, “Is it allowed for an ambassador to visit any army unit in India?” Another wrote, “Why an ambassador visiting our army places? To talk to Chandigarh lobby for F-35?”
Why an ambassador visiting our army places ? To talk to chandigarh lobby for f-35 ??
— Rohan Sagar (@RohanSagar03) February 16, 2026
“We have completely sold Indian sovereignty. Rothschild the evil Bankers will now control NSE. Modi sold Bharat Mata to Trump . And now American imperialist is visiting our army command . Scary,” wrote another user.
“The Indian Army isn’t part of geopolitics, so why is he interested in visiting there?,” opined another.
The Indian Army isn’t part of geopolitics, so why is he interested in visiting there?
— Aditya Pratap Singh (@Adi_IIMCIAN) February 16, 2026
On Sunday, Gor welcomed Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), highlighting efforts to expand the growing US-India defence partnership.
In a post on X, Gor wrote, “Delighted to have @INDOPACOM Commander Admiral Samuel Paparo in India to expand the U.S.-India defense partnership. Now is the time to strengthen vital cooperation between our two nations.”
On Monday, Admiral Samuel J. Paparo Jr visited the headquarters of India’s Western Army Command along with the American envoy Sergio Gor. The delegation was briefed on the formation’s capabilities, its past operations, and future plans.
The American delegation also visited Bengaluru, where they met three start-ups, two in the space sector and one in defence, and participated in an Indo-US conference.
