The Sensex rose 1,533.72 points, or 2.11 per cent, to close at 74,315.61 on Thursday, 15 October 2026, and the Nifty 50 gained 374.65 points, or 1.66 per cent, to end at 22,997.35, according to Business Standard’s market close report. The benchmark indices ended sharply higher as crude oil prices declined, which eased fears about persistent price pressure, the report said.
The size of the move can be worked back from the published figures. A gain of 1,533.72 points to 74,315.61 means the Sensex closed the previous session at about 72,782, and a gain of 374.65 points to 22,997.35 means the Nifty closed at about 22,623. Those previous closes are IndiaX24’s own calculation from the reported changes and are not quoted in the report.
Crude oil was the main driver. Business Standard’s headline says crude fell 2 per cent, and its report ties the rally to a decline in global oil prices that eased inflation concerns and lifted investor confidence across the broader market. India imports most of its crude oil, so a fall in oil prices generally lowers the import bill and reduces pressure on inflation. The report does not give the Brent crude price on the day, so the level is not stated here.
Among the Nifty 50 stocks, Tech Mahindra, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries were the top gainers, according to the report. Tech Mahindra reported its second-quarter results the same day, with net profit of Rs 1,586 crore and revenue of Rs 16,180 crore, and its shares rose about 4.75 per cent during the day, according to an Investing.com summary of its earnings call.
By sector, the Nifty IT index rose the most, and the Nifty PSU Bank index was the only sector index named as declining the most, according to the report. The market report’s headline credits information technology and auto stocks for the rally. The IT sector had been under pressure: ahead of the results season, Goodreturns reported that the Nifty IT index had fallen about 9 per cent over a month and nearly 20 per cent over a year, so Thursday’s rise came from a low base.
The rally followed a weak run for Indian shares. IndiaX24 reported that the Sensex and Nifty closed lower on 14 October as crude and foreign selling weighed, and that foreign portfolio investors had sold Indian shares for 13 straight sessions, with outflows of $32.5 billion. The sources reviewed for this article do not say whether foreign investors bought or sold on 15 October, so it is not known whether the selling streak ended.
Interest rates are also in the background. The Reserve Bank of India raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.50 per cent on 7 October, its first increase since February 2023, with retail inflation at 4.8 per cent in August, as IndiaX24 has reported. Falling crude helps the central bank’s inflation task, but the reports reviewed do not link Thursday’s move in shares to the RBI’s policy.
A single-day gain of more than 2 per cent is large for the Sensex, and it does not by itself show a change in trend. After a fall, a sharp rebound can fade if oil prices rise again or if foreign investors continue to sell. The sources reviewed do not give the Sensex’s 2026 high or low, so the level of 74,315.61 is not placed against the year’s range here.
The next signals for the market are the remaining second-quarter results, including Infosys on 23 October, the direction of crude oil prices and the flow of foreign money. IndiaX24 will report the next market close.
Image: The BSE building on Dalal Street, Mumbai (file photo). Photo by BSEINDIA, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.