Stocks surge, crude oil cools as war cries fade

Investors richer by ₹3.5 trillion; stocks at highest in 9 months, oil below $70

- Srushti Vaidya

Indian benchmark indices rose to reclaim levels last seen nine months ago, as investors cheered lower oil prices, a weaker dollar, and strong domestic flows back home. Market experts believe the combination bodes well for the bulls in the near term at least.

As a ceasefire in West Asia after 11 days of conflict took hold, markets bet that the worst of the disruption was behind. The Nifty closed 1.21% or 304.25 points higher at 25,549, while the Sensex closed 1.21% or 1,000 points up at 83,775.87. Thursday's closing was the highest since 1 October when the Nifty traded at 25796.9 and the Sensex at 84266.29.

The gains were led by HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Finance, which together accounted for almost three-fifths of the Nifty's gains. Reliance Industries' market capitalization crossed ₹20 trillion for the first time in nine months to touch ₹20.23 trillion.

Thursday's rally coincided with the expiry of the June series of derivatives—each series closes on the last Thursday of a month—which saw the Nifty gain almost 3% from 24833.6 at the May expiry to 25,549 at the June expiry.