Stock market today: Sensex, Nifty 50 stage smart rebound, jump 0.6%; cement & realty stocks lead gainers | Stock Market News

Indian Stock Market Today: The Indian stock market saw a significant recovery from its lows on Monday, December 2. Both benchmark indices ended the session with positive gains, marking the second consecutive day of rally. Investors appeared to have digested the weak Q2FY25 GDP data, which hit a seven-quarter low. 

The recovery was primarily driven by gains in heavyweight stocks, including Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, Infosys, and Bharti Airtel, which collectively supported the market’s upward movement.

Moreover, cement stocks, including UltraTech Cement and Grasim Industries, saw a significant rally after global brokerage firm Jefferies expressed optimism about a recovery for Indian cement companies in the second half of the fiscal year. 

Other stocks, including Shree Cement, India Cements, JK Lakshmi Cement, JK Cement, Andhra Cements, and ACC, also gained between 2 per cent and 4 per cent. 

Market experts believe that investors’ expectations of the government boosting spending in the second half of the current fiscal year drove today’s rally, despite weak GDP numbers. Additionally, analysts expect that the weak GDP data will pressure the RBI to implement measures to stimulate the economy.

Amid robust support from heavyweights and the strong rally in cement stocks, the Nifty 50 ended the session with a gain of 0.60 per cent, ending at 24,276 points, while the Sensex closed the session at 80,248 points, up 0.54 per cent compared to the previous closing price.

Mid and small-cap stocks also closed higher, outperforming the benchmark indices. The Nifty Midcap 100 index recorded a gain of 1.11 per cent, finishing at 57,000, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 index ended the session at 18,845, reflecting an increase of 1.02 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee touched another record low of 84.70 against the US dollar, hurt by concerns about economic growth slowing to its lowest in seven quarters alongside strong dollar bids in the non-deliverable forwards market. 

Commenting on today’s market performance, Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said, “Despite a slump in the Q2 growth rate, the market maintained a positive bias as the core sector output in October shows signs of recovery. Slowing earnings growth is already factored into the market, and mid and small-caps are rebounding. However, investors stay marginally cautious ahead of RBI policy this week due to the risk of a cut in GDP forecast.”

“The current inflation dynamics are not favourable for a rate cut in the short term, and the RBI is likely to turn more realistic on its growth projection for FY25,” he added.

Sectoral Performance: Realty shines, PSU banks lag

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Realty emerged as the top performer, gaining 3.04 per cent, with 7 out of the 10 constituents ending the session in the green. Godrej Properties led the rally, rising 4.5 per cent, followed by Prestige Estates and Phoenix Mills, which gained 4.1 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively.

Other stocks such as DLF, Oberoi Realty, and Macrotech Developers closed the session with gains of up to 3.2 per cent. Meanwhile, other sectoral indices including Nifty Consumer Durables, Nifty Pharma, Nifty Media, Nifty Auto, Nifty Infra, and Nifty IT ended the session with gains ranging from 0.80 per cent to 2 per cent.

On the downside, Nifty PSU Bank was the worst performer, slipping by 0.2 per cent, while Nifty FMCG also saw a mild decline of 0.05 per cent.

33 stocks end in green 

Out of the 50 Nifty constituents, 33 closed the session in the green, with UltraTech Cement emerging as the top performer, gaining 4 per cent. Other notable gainers included Apollo Hospitals, Grasim Industries, Shriram Finance, JSW Steel, Adani Ports & SEZ, Tech Mahindra, and 16 other stocks, which rose by between 1 per cent and 3.5 per cent.

On the losing side, HDFC Life Insurance was the top laggard, falling by 2.7 per cent. It was followed by Cipla, NTPC, SBI Life Insurance, Britannia Industries, HUL, Kotak Mahindra Bank, L&T, and IndusInd Bank, all of which ended the day with losses exceeding 0.5 per cent.

Nifty 50: Key levels and trends

Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst, LKP Securities said, 
“Nifty moved up after absorbing the initial weakness, as the index surpassed 24,200. It formed a green candle following a bullish harami pattern on the daily timeframe. The RSI has broken out of its recent consolidation and is in a bullish crossover. Additionally, the index continues to sustain above the 21 EMA. In the short term, 24,420 remains a tough hurdle. A decisive move above this level could trigger a rally towards 24,770. On the lower end, support is placed at 24,100 and 24,000.”

Disclaimer: The views and recommendations given in this article are those of individual analysts. These do not represent the views of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.