Sensex rally stands on shaky ground

When the Sensex closed at a new 52-week high on 29 October, it painted a picture of a market in full bloom. But beneath the surface of this headline-grabbing milestone lies a fractured and sobering reality, a Mint analysis reveals.

- Mayur Bhalerao

Barely one-third of BSElisted stocks have delivered positive returns in the 12 trading sessions since the peak. Compare that with the highest closing of 2024, which was achieved on 26 September that year. In a comparable period following that day, 42% of stocks stayed in the green.

The erosion of market breadth this time could signal a market that has turned far more selective. The numbers suggest India's current equity rally is being held up by a handful of heavyweight performers.

For context, the Sensex closed at 84,997.13 points on 29 October, and since then has fallen 0.1% by the close of trading on 17 November. Over this period, it has risen on eight days, and fallen on five days. On 29 October, 0.7% of BSE-listed stocks also touched their 52-week highs.

The narrowness becomes even clearer when looking at the performance of 4,045 BSElisted companies since 29 October 2025. A mere 1.3% of them have risen more than 30% from their recent 52-week highs, and another 8.6% are up 10-30%. Another 23% stocks have seen returns less than 10%. That means the remaining 67% have declined.