Sensex Surges 600 Points as Oil Spike Trims Intraday Gains

Mumbai, April 29: Indian equity benchmarks staged a comeback on Wednesday, with the BSE Sensex jumping over 600 points to around 77,500 and the Nifty 50 closing above the 24,150 mark, as buying in autos, FMCG and select heavyweights lifted shares.

The session began on a strong note as the Sensex surged over 1,000 points at one point and the Nifty sped past 24,300 in early trade, amid stock-specific action and earnings-driven optimism. But the rally lost some steam through the day as rising crude oil prices refused to simmer down.

After much push and pull, the benchmarks managed to hold on to some gains at close, though well off the peaks scaled during the day.

What Drove the Markets

The rise was led by auto, FMCG and realty stocks, which rose over 1% each. IT rose 1% only, while pharma, metals and oil & gas saw moderate gains.

Heavyweights Maruti Suzuki India, Coal India, Tech Mahindra, ITC Limited and Reliance Industries starredon the top gainers list, aided by earnings momentum despite macro concerns.

What Capped the Upside

Gains on the bourses were capped by a familiar culprit—surging crude oil prices, which continue to hover above the $110-per-barrel mark. Rising oil remains a key overhang for markets, given its direct impact on India’s inflation, fiscal position, and currency stability.

The impact was visible in intraday trade itself. Benchmarks pared a significant portion of early gains as crude prices climbed further, triggering profit booking at higher levels.

Currency weakness added to the cautious tone, with the rupee remaining under pressure amid elevated oil and persistent dollar demand.

Laggards and Sectoral Drag

On the flip side, stocks such as InterGlobe Aviation, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, NTPC Limited and Bajaj Finserv ended among the key laggards, limiting the overall upside.

Sectorally, PSU banks, media and consumer durables indices declined, reflecting selective weakness even as the headline indices ended higher.

Broader Market Picture

The broader market was mixed. The midcap index ended largely flat, while smallcaps rose 0.65%.

To sum up, today’s session showed resilience and restrain both as earnings-driven buying and domestic flows offered support but surging oil prices, a weak rupee, and global uncertainty continued to play villain, capping gains.

The market has bounced back, but it’s still trading with a leash on—every rally is being tested by oil, and until that pressure eases, upside may remain capped.

Source:

• NSE
• BSE