Fed cut hopes fuel 285-point Sensex surge, Nifty nears 25K

The Sensex rose 285 points to 81,592 and Nifty gained 91 points to 24,961 on Monday, led by IT majors after Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted at a September rate cut. Infosys, TCS and HCL Tech rallied, even as FIIs sold ₹1,622 crore of stocks on Friday.

Mumbai: Benchmark indices rebounded in early trade on Monday in line with a rally in global equity markets on hopes of a potential US Federal Reserve rate cut.

Buying in IT stocks also drove the markets higher during the initial trade.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 285.62 points to 81,592.47 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up by 91.25 points to 24,961.35.

From the Sensex firms, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, and Tata Steel were among the major gainers.

However, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank, Eternal, and ITC were among the laggards.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng traded in positive territory.

The US markets ended sharply higher on Friday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average surged 1.89 per cent, the Nasdaq Composite climbed 1.88 per cent, and the S&P 500 edged higher by 1.52 per cent.

"Fed chief Jerome Powell’s remark at Jackson Hole that ‘there is a downside risk to unemployment and shifting risk balance may warrant policy adjustment’ clearly indicates a rate cut in September. The US stock market gave a thumbs up to this comment," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,622.52 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

"Globally, the Dow scaled record highs, and Fed Chair Powell hinted at a rate cut. Yet, caution is advised as Trump’s tariff deadline looms on 27th August," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude traded 0.09 per cent up at USD 67.79 a barrel.

On Friday, the Sensex tumbled 693.86 points or 0.85 per cent to settle at 81,306.85. The Nifty dropped 213.65 points or 0.85 per cent to 24,870.10.