Stock markets rally for 5th day; Sensex jumps 855 pts on buying in banking, IT shares
Mumbai, Apr 21 (PTI): Rallying for the fifth day in a row, benchmark Sensex jumped 855 points to close above the 79,000 mark on heavy buying in banking and IT shares following strong quarterly results and foreign fund inflows.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 855.30 points or 1.09 per cent to settle at 79,408.50 with 23 of its components ending in green. During the day, it surged 1,081.85 points or 1.37 per cent to 79,635.05.
The NSE Nifty climbed 273.90 points or 1.15 per cent to close at 24,125.55 as 39 of its constituents advanced and 11 declined.
In the five-day rally, Sensex jumped by 5,561.35 points or over 7 per cent and Nifty surged by 1,726.40 points, recouping all the losses triggered by imposition of reciprocal tariffs by US President Donald Trump tariffs on April 2.
Among Sensex scrips, Tech Mahindra, IndusInd Bank, Power Grid, Bajaj Finserv, Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, State Bank of India, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Infosys, HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries were the biggest gainers.
Adani Ports, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Asian Paints and Nestle were among the laggards.
HDFC Bank shares climbed over 1 per cent after the leading private lender reported a 7 per cent growth in its consolidated net profit for the March quarter to Rs 18,835 crore.
Infosys shares rallied over 2 per cent after the company's March quarter net profit rose by 3.3 per cent sequentially.
Reliance Industries shares surged nearly 2 per cent which also boosted the rally in benchmark indices.
The BSE midcap gauge surged 2.20 per cent and the smallcap index jumped 1.67 per cent.
On the market rally, Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said, "The bulls took over, which led the Nifty to cross 24k in the third attempt over the last 3 months and fuelled Bank Nifty to touch a new high. The possibility of a bilateral trade agreement with the US is adding optimism in the market."
The better results from bank stocks owing to improved asset quality and credit growth attracted investors, analysts said.
"A contrarian bet on IT due to its attractive valuation with an expectation of improvement in spending in the latter half of FY26 is keeping the counter busy. While the dollar index slumps to a three-year low, another layer of uncertainty may attract more FII inflows into the domestic market in the near term," Nair added.
All BSE sectoral indices ended higher, with oil & gas soaring 2.61 per cent, power (2.49 per cent), BSE Focused IT (2.42 per cent), IT (2.31 per cent), realty (2.27 per cent), auto (2.12 per cent) and metal (2 per cent).
As many as 2,918 stocks advanced while 1,168 declined and 161 remained unchanged on the BSE.
In the past five days, the BSE benchmark gauge zoomed 5,561.35 points or 7.53 per cent, and the Nifty surged 1,726.4 points or 7.70 per cent.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 4,667.94 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi index and Shanghai SSE Composite settled in the positive territory while Tokyo's Nikkei 225 ended lower. Markets were closed in Hong Kong.
US markets ended mostly lower on Thursday. Equity markets in the US were closed for 'Good Friday'.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 2.71 per cent to USD 66.25 a barrel.
The BSE benchmark Sensex jumped 1,508.91 points or 1.96 per cent to settle at 78,553.20 on Thursday. The Nifty surged 414.45 points or 1.77 per cent to 23,851.65.
Stock markets were closed on Friday for 'Good Friday'.
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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.
