Market Overview: The Indian stock market continued its positive momentum on Tuesday, with the BSE Sensex climbing 344 points, or 0.4%, to reach 80,577, marking its highest level in over six weeks. This surge is part of a broader trend, as the market has extended its gains for three consecutive sessions. The rally was mainly driven by strong performance in the oil & gas, banking, and financial services sectors, which have been performing well due to a combination of factors.

Global Influence: The Sensex's gains also followed positive cues from global markets, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq in the United States showing strength overnight. A key driver for global markets was the optimism stemming from comments by Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, who suggested the possibility of a 25 basis points (bps) rate cut in the central bank’s upcoming policy decision. This caused tech shares to lead the gains on Wall Street, and the positive sentiment carried over to the Indian market.

Sector Performance: The Indian market's rise was supported by specific sectors:

• Oil & Gas: The sector saw robust performance, led by ONGC, which gained 2.3%.
• Banking: The banking sector continued to show strength, with SBIN rising by 2.1%.
• Financial Services: Shriram Finance recorded a 3.1% gain, contributing to the market's overall rise.

Profit Booking: While the market showed strong growth, some traders chose to book profits ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) monetary policy meeting later this week. Despite the profit-taking, the overall sentiment remained positive, as investors largely shrugged off concerns over softer GDP growth in the September quarter. The RBI is expected to maintain the benchmark policy repo rate at 6.5% for the 11th consecutive meeting, given the persistently high inflation observed in October.

Key Gainers: Several stocks were key contributors to the rally:

• Adani Ports (+3.8%)
• Shriram Finance (+3.1%)
• ONGC (+2.3%)
• SBIN (+2.1%)
• Cipla (+2.0%)

Conclusion: The Indian stock market’s climb reflects both global optimism, driven by potential rate cuts in the US, and domestic sectoral strength, particularly in oil, banking, and financial services. Despite concerns about India's GDP growth, investors are maintaining confidence, with the focus shifting to upcoming policy decisions by the RBI.