Mumbai, May 15 (IANS) Domestic stock markets closed sharply higher on Thursday after US President Donald Trump claimed that India has agreed to reduce tariffs to zero on a range of American goods as part of the bilateral trade deal. The announcement lifted investor sentiment. The Sensex surged by 1,200.18 points, or 1.48 per cent, to end the day at 82,530.74. During the session, the index touched an intra-day high of 82,718.14.

The Nifty index also saw strong gains, closing above the 25,000 mark for the first time after October 2024, ending at 25,062.10. The index gained 395.20 points, or 1.6 per cent, and traded in a range between 24,494.45 and 25,116.25 during the session. The recent consolidation breakout, along with a move above the swing high, has increased the probability of the index reaching 25,690 in the short term, market expert said. “Immediate resistance is placed at 25,360, above which further upside potential may be unlocked. On the downside, 24,400 is expected to act as strong support in the short to medium term,” Rupak De of LKP Securities stated.

On the 30 Sensex constituent stocks, Tata Motors led the gains with a 4.16 per cent jump, followed by HCL Technologies, which rose 3.37 per cent. Eternal gained 2.22 per cent, while Adani Ports added 2.19 per cent. Other notable gainers include Maruti Suzuki India, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank and more. On the downside, IndusInd Bank was the only loser with a drop of 0.16 per cent. Mid- and small-cap stocks also participated in the rally. The Nifty Midcap100 index rose 0.70 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap100 gained 0.54 per cent.

All sectoral indices on the NSE ended in positive territory -- showing broad-based buying. Market volatility also eased. The India VIX, which measures fear and uncertainty in the market, dropped by 1.93 per cent to settle at 16.89. Analysts said that easing geopolitical and trade concerns, along with strong domestic sentiment, helped fuel the rally across sectors.