Why Stock Market Is Rising Today: Indian stock markets rallying high at midday on Monday, August 18, supported by two major positives. First, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement of next-generation GST reforms expected by Diwali 2025. Second, S&P Global Ratings upgrading India’s sovereign credit rating from ‘BBB-’ to ‘BBB’ with a stable outlook.
By 12:40 PM, the BSE Sensex was up 702 points or 0.87 per cent at 81,399, while the NSE Nifty50 traded 264 points or 1.07 per cent higher at 24,888. The overall market capitalization of India-listed companies jumped by Rs 6.22 lakh crore today.
Sectoral Highlights:
GST rate rationalisation hopes have driven gains in key sectors—
Nifty Auto surged 4.4 per cent
Nifty Consumer Durables rose 3.5 per cent
Nifty Consumption climbed 2.5 per cent
Nifty Realty added 2 per cent
Top Volume Stocks:
Vodafone Idea +5 per cent
Ashok Leyland +8 per cent
PG Electroplast +11 per cent
Niva Bupa +7.5 per cent
Other notable sector gainers:
Cement stocks like JK Lakshmi Cement, Shree Cement, JK Cement, and Shree Digvijay up between 4-6 per cent
Power sector stocks including Kalpataru Projects, Waaree Energies, Adani Energy, and KEC International up 3-9 per cent
Chemicals like Kanoria Chemicals, DCW, Supreme Petrochem, and India Glycol gained 3-9 per cent
Top Gainers:
IFB Industries soared 17 per cent
Jai Corp up 15 per cent
Zaggle Prepaid rose 10 per cent
Pfizer climbed 8.2 per cent
Top Losers:
Datamatics fell 8 per cent
Suzlon Energy down 5 per cent
Ethos Ltd dropped 6 per cent
Godfrey Phillips slipped 5 per cent
Auto and Financials Lead Rally
Hero MotoCorp remains the star performer, surging 8 per cent, followed by Maruti Suzuki, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Auto, Ultratech Cement, and M&M. Other gainers include Nestle India, HUL, SBI Life, HDFC Life, Tata Consumer Products, IndusInd Bank, and Trent.
Meanwhile, some heavyweight names like HCL Tech, ITC, L&T, Dr Reddy’s, Sun Pharma, Wipro, Infosys, and ONGC edged lower.
Broader Market Strength
The Nifty MidCap and SmallCap indices are both up around 1 per cent, reflecting broad-based buying. Nifty Bank and Financial Services indices gained 1.18 per cent and 1.67 per cent respectively after S&P upgraded credit ratings for key banks and NBFCs.
Volatility on the Rise
Despite the strong gains, India VIX (the volatility index) jumped over 4 per cent, signaling some caution among investors.
What’s Driving Momentum?
Markets are rallying on the back of PM Modi’s GST reforms promise, S&P’s credit rating upgrade (first in 18 years), and hopes for lower tax rates boosting consumption and auto sectors.
