On Wednesday, September 23, the Indian stock market closed higher, led by a rally in metal, FMCG and realty stocks. The S&P BSE SENSEX finished at 74,838.25, up 299.17 points or 0.4%, while the NSE’s NIFTY50 climbed 117.80 points, or 0.5%, to 23,446.80. The NIFTY Smallcap 100 index surged 0.89% to 19,991.50, and the NIFTY Midcap 100 index closed at 62,396.45, rising 0.7%. The market breadth favored advances, with 2,344 stocks up against 1,232 down.

Metal stocks led the gains as copper prices hit a fresh all‑time high, continuing a seven‑session rally driven by sustained demand, production and supply‑chain disruptions. NIFTY Metal rose 2.4%, topping the sectoral gains. NIFTY FMCG, NIFTY PSU Bank, NIFTY Realty and NIFTY Pharma also posted gains of 1.32%, 1.14%, 1.1% and 0.9% respectively. NIFTY IT fell 0.87% and NIFTY Media slipped 0.5%, the only sectors to decline.

Bajaj Finance was the biggest contributor to the NIFTY50, rising 3.41%, followed by Hindalco Industries at 3.17%, Tata Steel at 3.16%, Apollo Hospitals at 2.64% and JSW Steel at 2.43%. On the downside, HCL Technologies fell 1.08%, Titan Company 0.98%, Infosys 0.86%, Coal India 0.81% and TCS 0.93%. A total of 38 NIFTY50 stocks advanced while 14 declined.

Crude oil prices eased for a second straight session, falling below the $100 per barrel mark amid expectations of a diplomatic resolution to the US‑Iran conflict through UN talks in New York. The decline in oil prices contributed to the positive market sentiment, which was further buoyed by global cues. Global rating agencies S&P and Fitch raised India’s FY27 GDP growth projection to 7% and 6.9% respectively.

Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth ₹3,809.99 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, while domestic institutional investors purchased ₹4,120.07 crore worth of equities. The NSE saw 3,689 stocks traded, with 135 hitting 52‑week highs and 52 touching one‑year lows. The market capitalisation of NSE‑listed firms stood at ₹483.31 lakh crore at session close. India VIX slipped 6.41% to 10.29.

On the global front, most Asian indices extended their rally for a sixth straight session. Japan’s Nikkei closed 1.36% higher, South Korea’s KOSPI rose 0.89%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 1.13% and China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.4%. In the United States, the Nasdaq hit a record‑high close on Tuesday, lifting AI‑related stocks, while the S&P 500 hovered just below a record high, ending flat at 7,764.64. The overall market sentiment remained optimistic amid falling oil prices and positive global cues.