Dalal Street welcomed 2026 with a cheerful start on Thursday morning. The BSE Sensex rang the first opening bell of the new year above 85,370, climbing more than 150 points, while the NSE Nifty50 started the day near 26,200, jumping a little over 50 points, as of 9:15 AM.
In the pre-open session, the Sensex inched up 35 points to cross 85,250, and the Nifty rose almost 50 points and touched 26,173, around 9:10 AM.
Notably, both equity benchmarks staged a strong rebound on Wednesday, the final trading session of 2025, snapping recent losing streaks as sustained domestic institutional buying and sharp gains in heavyweight stocks lifted market sentiment.
After several sessions of decline, investors returned to value buying across energy, PSU banks, metals and consumer durables, helping the benchmarks close sharply higher, traders said. The Sensex surged 545.52 points, or 0.64 per cent, to settle at 85,220.60, ending a five-day losing run. During the session, the index climbed as much as 762.09 points, or 0.90 per cent, to touch an intra-day high of 85,437.17. The Nifty also rebounded after four consecutive days of losses, gaining 190.75 points, or 0.74 per cent, to close at 26,129.60.
2025 In Review: Benchmarks End Year With Solid Gains
For calendar year 2025, the Sensex rallied 7,081.59 points, or 9 per cent, while the Nifty climbed 2,484.80 points, or 10.50 per cent.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed firms rose by Rs 33.84 lakh crore during the year to Rs 4,75,79,238.11 crore ($5.29 trillion).
However, the broader market showed mixed performance. The BSE midcap index rose 509.68 points, or 1.09 per cent, in 2025, while the smallcap gauge declined 3,655.14 points, or 6.62 per cent.
Indian equity markets closed the year on a positive note, with sentiment turning constructive but without aggressive risk-taking, analysts said.
“The session reflected a gradual improvement in risk appetite into year-end, driven largely by short covering and selective buying rather than strong fresh positioning,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm.
