Sensex, Nifty Close Diwali Muhurat Trading Session At Three-Week High
The Sensex closed 355 points, or 0.55%, higher at 65,259.45, while the Nifty 50 gained 100 points, or 0.52%, to end at 19,525.55.

India's benchmark stock indices ended the Diwali special one-hour Muhurat trading session on a higher note, led by gains in I.T. and metal stocks.
The S&P BSE Sensex Index ended above the 65,200 mark, whereas the NSE Nifty 50 scaled 19,500 during the trading session. Both indices ended at their highest levels since Oct. 20.
The S&P BSE Sensex closed 355 points, or 0.55%, higher at 65,259.45, while the NSE Nifty 50 gained 100 points, or 0.52%, to end at 19,525.55.
“As we bid farewell to Samvat 2079, the horizon of Samvat 2080 looks promising," said Prashanth Tapse, senior vice president at Mehta Equities Ltd. "We recommend accumulating value picks with strong fundamentals for potential growth."
The market's optimism is fueled by factors such as the Federal Reserve's efforts for a "soft landing", robust GST numbers, active retail participation, easing Middle East conflict, and declining oil prices, he said.
The special session that ended on Sunday also marked the beginning of a new Samvat 2080—the Hindu calendar year that starts on Diwali.
Infosys Ltd., HDFC Bank Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., ICICI Bank Ltd., Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., and BPCL positively contributed to the Nifty 50.
Whereas, BPCL, UltraTech Cement Ltd., Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd., Britannia Industries Ltd., and Bajaj Finserv Ltd. weighed on the index.
The broader markets outperformed, with the S&P BSE MidCap Index rising 0.67% and the S&P BSE SmallCap Index gaining 1.14% by end of mahurata trading on Sunday.
All the 20 sectors compiled by BSE Ltd. advanced with S&P BSE Information Technology, S&P BSE Industrials, S&P BSE Metal and S&P BSE Energy rising the most.
The market breadth was skewed in favour of the buyers. About 2,903 stocks rose, 690 declined, and 120 remained unchanged on the BSE.
"The mid- and small-cap rally is partly driven by retail exuberance and since the valuations in this broader market is high, investors have to exercise some caution," said VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
A Look At Samvat 2079
During the Samvat 2079, The NSE Nifty 50 rose 10.5% since last Diwali Oct. 21, 2022, while the S&P BSE Sensex jumped 9.4%.
Samvat 2079, was a year marked by global volatility, which saw Indian equity benchmarks scale new records, outperforming emerging peers.
While the broader markets outperformed the benchmarks, real estate and automobiles were the best performing sectoral indices. Silver outperformed gold.
The Nifty Bank grew 7.4%, while broader market indices Nifty Smallcap 250 and Midcap 150 rose 35.1% and 30%, respectively, during the period.