Stock market today: Nifty50 ends near 26,200; BSE Sensex up over 440 points as market rallies strongly

Stock market today: Nifty50 and BSE Sensex, the Indian equity benchmark indices, rallied strongly in trade on Thursday, with Nifty50 nearing its lifetime intraday high. The stock market gains were driven by positive movements in oil & gas and select financial stocks, supported by foreign investment inflows.NSE Nifty reached its 52-week high of 26,246.65 before settling at 26,192.15, up by 139.50 points or 0.54 per cent. The BSE Sensex concluded at 85,632.68, rising by 446.21 points or 0.52 per cent, after touching a 52-week peak of 85,801.70 during trading. Analysts noted that positive performance in global markets contributed to domestic indices reaching their yearly highs during intra-day trading.Among the Sensex components, top gainers included Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra and Axis Bank. Conversely, Asian Paints, HCL Tech, Titan and Hindustan Unilever were the top losers."Indian equities rose on optimism around India–US trade talks and progress on phase-1 agreements, boosting overall market sentiment. Global cues also remained strong, led by tech-driven gains following solid earnings. Fresh FII inflows and strength in large-cap sectors such as Auto, Financials, and IT supported the upbeat trend," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.Asian markets showed mixed results, with gains in South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng, whilst Shanghai's SSE Composite declined. European markets traded higher, and US markets closed positively on Wednesday.Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth Rs 1,580.72 crore on Wednesday, whilst Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) acquired stocks valued at Rs 1,360.27 crore, according to exchange data.Brent crude prices increased by 0.83 per cent to USD 64.03 per barrel. The previous session saw the Sensex rise by 513.45 points to 85,186.47, whilst the Nifty gained 142.60 points to reach 26,052.65.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)