Mumbai, May 17 (IANS) Indian stock markets witnessed a stellar rally in the week ended May 16, delivering over 4 per cent returns to investors and recording the best weekly performance since the week ending October 4, 2024.

The benchmark Nifty surged by 1,011.80 points or 4.21 per cent – marking its strongest weekly gain in more than seven months.

Similarly, the Sensex jumped 2,876.12 points or 3.62 per cent — reflecting robust investor confidence.

Mid and small-cap stocks outperformed large-caps during the week. The Nifty Midcap 100 index rallied 7.21 per cent, while the Nifty Smallcap 100 index rose by over 9 per cent — showcasing a broad-based market recovery.

Sector-wise, Defence stocks led the gains with a sharp 17.2 per cent surge, followed by realty (10.78 per cent), metals (9.28 per cent), media (9.10 per cent), and public sector enterprises (7.28 per cent).

Most sectoral indices ended the week in the green. Among the top gainers on the Sensex during the week were Tata Steel (10.3 per cent), Tech Mahindra (8.3 per cent), Eternal (Zomato, 8.2 per cent), Adani Ports (7.7 per cent), Bajaj Finserv (6.1 per cent), and Maruti Suzuki (6.1 per cent).

On the losing side, IndusInd Bank declined 4.6 per cent, Bharti Airtel fell 1.9 per cent, and Sun Pharma dipped 0.6 per cent.

Nandish Shah, Senior Derivatives and Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, said, “Nifty continues to trade above its short-term moving averages, maintaining a bullish trend. The next resistance is seen at 25,207, while support is placed around 24,800.”

On Friday, the markets ended mixed. While large-cap stocks saw some profit booking, buying continued in the mid and small-cap segments.

The Sensex closed 200.15 points or 0.24 per cent lower at 82,330.59, and the Nifty ended 42.30 points or 0.17 per cent down at 25,019.80.

Meanwhile, the Nifty Midcap 100 gained 529.65 points or 0.94 per cent to close at 57,060.50, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index climbed 320 points or 1.86 per cent to settle at 17,560.40.

–IANS

pk/rad