Sensex rally: 6 reasons Nifty climbed above 24,000

What happened in the market

Indian equities saw renewed buying interest across multiple sessions, with benchmark indices registering sharp intraday and closing gains. On Wednesday, March 29, the BSE Sensex climbed as much as 992 points (1.29 percent) to 77,879, while the NSE Nifty added 303 points (1.26 percent) to 24,298 in intraday trade. At 11:33 AM that day, the Sensex was at 77,786, up 899 points (1.17 percent), and the Nifty 50 stood at 24,279, up 283 points (1.18 percent). The rally was not limited to large caps, with small-caps and mid-caps also advancing.

March 29: Small-caps and mid-caps join the upmove

The broader market showed visible strength on March 29, led by small-cap stocks. The Nifty Smallcap 100 index was up 1.20 percent. In the list of top movers, Bandhan Bank, Tenneco Clean Air, and Garden Reach Shipbuilders were among the leaders, rising as much as 12 percent. Mid-caps also participated, with the Nifty Midcap 100 index advancing 0.85 percent, supported by gains of up to 6 percent in Godfrey Phillips India, Vodafone Idea, and IndusInd Bank.

Why Sensex and Nifty rose: Earnings and high-frequency data

Analysts linked the move to better-than-expected quarterly earnings and supportive high-frequency indicators, which strengthened expectations of a strong Q4 performance. VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said results coming in were better than expectations and pointed to quarterly data such as credit growth and tobacco and cigarette consumption as being strong. The message for investors was that the earnings season narrative was improving and was being reinforced by data points beyond headline profit numbers.

Oil, West Asia risks, and what the market is pricing in

Sunny Agarwal, head of fundamental research at SBI Securities, said markets had largely discounted concerns around the West Asia crisis and were not reacting significantly to elevated oil prices. He added that any moderation in oil prices would be positive for economies such as India. The same theme appeared across other sessions, where investors tracked the U.S.-Iran situation and the potential impact on crude, but still bought equities when risk sentiment improved.

Auto stocks lead: Nifty Auto up 2.26 percent

Auto shares were a key pocket of strength on March 29. The Nifty Auto index rose 2.26 percent to 26,372. Maruti Suzuki India led the pack with a 5 percent gain, while Bharat Forge, M&M, Exide Industries, and Eicher Motors were up over 2 percent each. The rally in auto stocks was linked to positive management commentary from Maruti Suzuki India, which forecast growth for FY27 after announcing its FY26 results the previous day.

IT rebound: Valuations attract buyers after a correction

Information technology stocks also supported the broader rally. The Nifty IT index gained 1.64 percent to 29,434, with nine of ten constituents in the green and L&T down 0.33 percent. Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Mphasis, and TCS gained up to 3 percent. Vijayakumar highlighted that IT valuations had become attractive after a sharp correction, noting the Nifty IT index was nearly 27 percent below its peak. He also flagged that projected growth in IT could be 2 to 3 percent in FY27, which influences how investors think about P/E multiples.

Heavyweights add fuel: Reliance, Bharti Airtel, M&M, ITC

Buying in index heavyweights strengthened sentiment. Reliance Industries rose 2.46 percent, M&M gained 3.30 percent, Bharti Airtel advanced 2.28 percent, and ITC rose 2.17 percent. Vijayakumar said the rally in ITC was driven by expectations of stronger-than-expected results and improved sales. In parallel, technical commentary also turned constructive, with Geojit’s Anand James pointing to intraday price action that suggested the Nifty could come out of a bearish structure and eye 24,350 to 24,470 initially.

April 27 rebound: Benchmarks snap a three-day losing streak

In another key session, Sensex and Nifty50 rebounded sharply on Monday, April 27, snapping a three-day losing streak amid broad buying, positive global cues, and a supportive earnings backdrop. Sensex touched an intraday high of 77,420.04, up 755.83 points (0.98 percent), while the Nifty50 hit 24,130.7, up 232.75 points (0.97 percent). At close, the Sensex ended at 77,303.63, up 639.42 points (0.83 percent), and the Nifty50 closed at 24,092.70, up 194.75 points (0.81 percent). Broader indices outperformed, with the Nifty Midcap 100 up 1.47 percent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 up 1.9 percent.

Volatility cools and market wealth rises

On April 27, India VIX slipped to 18.38, down nearly 6.77 percent, signalling lower volatility and reduced near-term uncertainty. The session also saw a sizeable jump in aggregate market value. Investors gained around ₹6.63 trillion as total market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies rose to ₹468 trillion from ₹461.5 trillion in the previous session. Breadth was strong too, with 2,570 stocks advancing out of 3,386 on the NSE.

Global cues and policy news in focus

Global cues played a role, with Asian markets trading higher and U.S. stocks ending mostly higher on Friday, led by a surge in Intel shares. The Nasdaq rose 1.6 percent and the S&P 500 gained 0.8 percent, while the Dow slipped 0.2 percent. Separately, trade policy news added to the domestic narrative, as India and New Zealand were set to sign a Free Trade Agreement in New Delhi. The Ministry of Commerce factsheet stated that all 8,284 Indian export products would get duty-free access to New Zealand once the pact entered into force, while India offered market access on 70.03 percent of its tariff lines, covering 95 percent of bilateral import value from New Zealand.

Key numbers at a glance

Market impact and why investors tracked these factors

The common thread across these sessions was broad-based participation, with rallies supported by a mix of earnings, sector rotation, and improving risk sentiment. Auto and IT provided leadership on March 29, while heavyweights added stability to the move. The easing in India VIX on April 27 offered a measurable signal that near-term uncertainty had reduced, even as investors continued to monitor geopolitical risk and oil prices. Policy-linked developments such as the India-New Zealand FTA added another layer for export-linked themes, though the day-to-day market moves were still closely tied to earnings season positioning and global risk appetite.

Conclusion

Across March 29 and April 27, Indian equities moved higher on a combination of earnings surprises, improving high-frequency data, sector-led buying, and calmer volatility. Investors remained focused on crude oil, West Asia headlines, and global market direction, while tracking sector leadership in auto, IT, banking, and FMCG. Near-term market attention is expected to stay on the Q4 results cycle and on how geopolitical developments influence crude and risk sentiment.