D-Street grasps at ceasefire straw, rebounds 1% from early losses

Mumbai: India's key stock indices ended over 1% higher on Monday, recouping early losses, as a ceasefire proposal in the West Asia conflict sparked a pullback from the oversold levels.

NSE's Nifty rose 255.15 points, or 1.1%, to close at 22,968.25. BSE's Sensex rose 787.3 points, or 1.1%, to end at 74,106.85. Both indices were down as much as 0.8% earlier in the day.

Monday's market recovery was driven by a mix of fundamental and technical factors, said Shrikant Chouhan, head of Equity Research, Kotak Securities.


"Short covering from oversold levels, along with crude staying below $110 despite Trump's threats, lifted sentiment and triggered buying interest," he said.

The India VIX slipped 0.2% to 25.47 on Monday, a modest decline, pointing to lingering caution among investors despite the market's rebound.

The ceasefire plan - including an end to the hostilities between the US and Iran and reopening the Strait of Hormuz - comes ahead of Donald Trump's Tuesday deadline to Tehran to allow passage through the key shipping route.

At home, foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth ₹8,167 crore. Domestic institutions were buyers worth ₹8,089 crore.

Broader market indices Nifty Midcap 150 gained 1.4%, and Nifty Small-cap 250 rose 1.1% on Monday. Out of the total 4,544 stocks traded on BSE, 3,193 advanced and 1,173 fell at close.

"The recent decline has lost momentum over the past few sessions, opening room for a rebound," said Chouhan.

The Nifty could move towards 23,200 in the near term, where profit booking may emerge, he said.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan gained 0.55% and South Korea advanced 1.4%. Stock markets in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan remained shut on Monday. The pan-Europe index Stoxx 600 was down 0.2% at the time of going to print.