Nifty surges 115 points on expiry day as crude retreat and CAS swing the close

Indian stock markets closed strongly on Tuesday, the day of monthly derivatives expiry, as crude oil prices retreated and a new auction window delivered a surprise boost to closing prices. The Nifty 50 finished at 24,334, up 115.50 points or 0.48 percent, while the BSE Sensex added 286 points or 0.37 percent to close at 77,656. This marked the first monthly expiry under SEBI's new Closing Auction Session, which introduced a 15-minute auction window after trading stopped at 3.15 pm.

The auction alone added 75 points to the Nifty and 126 points to the Sensex, a development that surprised many participants. Nandish Shah, Deputy Vice President at HDFC Securities, noted that the Nifty staged an intraday reversal of over 200 points to close at its highest level since August 14. The session opened in the red due to the announcement of US sanctions on Iran, but markets quickly adjusted as the measures proved less severe.

Brent crude fell over 3 percent to around $89 a barrel, easing concerns about India's import costs, while the rupee gained 32-34 paise to close at 95.41 against the dollar. The Dollar Index slipped below 99. Individual stocks in the Nifty 50 that led gains included Adani Enterprises, Max Healthcare, and Apollo Hospitals, while HDFC Life, Cipla, and ONGC underperformed.

Despite a positive close, the NSE cash-market turnover fell 4 percent compared to the previous session, indicating subdued participation. Market breadth was narrow with an advance-decline ratio of 0.94, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 slipped 0.10 percent. Gold on COMEX eased 0.30 percent to $4,637 per ounce, while domestic prices dipped around ₹300 to ₹162,950, as crude's retreat and rupee strength capped safe-haven demand.

Looking ahead, markets will face a busy calendar, with Nvidia's quarterly earnings, US consumer confidence data, Fed meeting minutes, and developments on US-Iran tensions and crude oil prices expected to influence sentiment.