Bulls charge on Auto, IT stocks; Sensex adds 455 points, Nifty reclaims 25k

Stock market closing bell, Monday, May 26, 2025: Shares of Auto, and Information Technology (IT) related companies were in high demand on Dalal Street on Tuesday, May 26, emerging as the top gainers in the week's first session and driving the BSE Sensex above 82,150 and the Nifty50 past the 25,000 mark. Buying was also seen among the broader basket, with mid-cap and small-cap indices settling higher.

 

At the close, the BSE Sensex stood at 82,176.45, up by 455.37 points or 0.56 per cent, while the NSE Nifty50 added 148 points or 0.60 per cent to finish at 25,001.15.

 

 

Bajaj Auto, JSW Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Trent, and Hindalco were among the top gainers of Nifty50 constituent stocks, settling higher in the range of 2.39 - 1.68 per cent. On the other hand, Eternal, UltraTech Cement, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and NTPC were among the top laggards, ending down in the range of 4.59 - 0.38 per cent.

 

The day ended in favor of the bulls, as 1,735 out of 2,982 traded stocks on the NSE settled higher, while 1,173 ended in the red, and 74 remained unchanged.

 

As many as 127 stocks hit their upper circuit limit, while 68 touched their lower circuit limit on the NSE on Monday. At the close, the market capitalisation of NSE-listed companies stood at $5.18 trillion.

Mid, SmallCap shares end higher

The sentiment remained favorable in the broader markets as well, with the Nifty Smallcap100, and Nifty Midcap100 indices settling higher by 0.67 percent and 0.37 percent, respectively. BEML was the top gainer among this space, ending higher by 15.51 per cent. This was followed by KEC International (6.47 per cent), IFCI (5.77 per cent), Action Construction (5.12 per cent), Housing & Urban Development Corporation (4.75 per cent), and Suzlon (4 per cent).

 

Auto, IT outperform

Among sectoral indices, all but select healthcare ended in the green, with the Nifty Auto, and Nifty IT indices leading the way, gaining 1.05 per cent and 1.02 per cent, respectively. Bajaj Auto (2.39 per cent), Mahindra & Mahindra (2.09 per cent), Coforge (1.66 per cent), and HCL Tech (1.55 per cent) were among the top gainers in the space.

 

The gains among the sectoral front were closely followed by the Nifty FMCG and Metal indices, which ended higher by 0.97 per cent and 0.94 per cent, respectively.

Analysts Weigh In

The US decision to consider extending the deadline for imposing aggressive tariffs on the European Union (EU), coupled with a decline in the dollar index, Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Investments, said, contributed to a rebound in the domestic equity markets. These developments, Nair believes, suggest that trade negotiations are progressing constructively, which could help moderate market volatility.

 

"The early onset of the southwest monsoon and a decline in domestic bond yields have encouraged investors to maintain their focus on riskier assets. The broader market outperformed, driven by expectations of increased rural consumption and a stronger Q4 GDP, following better-than-anticipated corporate earnings for the quarter," said Nair.

 

Meanwhile, Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research at Religare Broking – said that the move reaffirms their positive outlook on the markets; however, caution persists due to mixed global cues, which continue to limit the pace of the rally. As the Nifty once again approaches its previous swing high, sustained strength in key sectors, especially banking, Mishra believes, will be crucial to surpass the 25,200 hurdle and regain upward momentum. "In the meantime, traders are advised to remain stock-specific and use any intermediate dips or pauses as opportunities to accumulate quality names across sectors," said Mishra.

 

Nifty50 eyes 25,200

From the technical point of view, the Nifty50 index has formed a bullish candle with a higher high and higher low, signaling continuation of the uptrend for the second session in a row due to strong buying demand from the 20-day EMA. According to analysts at Bajaj Broking, the bias remains positive and dips, if any, in the coming sessions should be used as a buying opportunity, as they expect the index to head higher towards 25,300 levels in the coming sessions.

 

"On the higher side, a move above Monday’s high (25,079) will be a positive signal and will open upside towards 25,200-25,300 levels. On the lower side, 24,800 is likely to act as immediate support, while short-term support is seen at 24,400–24,500, being the confluence of the 20-day EMA, the previous breakout area, and the last 2 weeks' lows," said the analysts at Bajaj Broking.