Sensex Up 633 Points, Nifty Tops 23,750 – Why Stock Market Rose Today

Stock Market Today: Domestic equity benchmark indices extended gains for the third consecutive session on March 18, 2026, led by buying in IT stocks as investors looked for value.

The BSE Sensex rose 633.29 points, or 0.83 per cent, to close at 76,704.13, while the NSE Nifty 50 gained 196.65 points, or 0.83 per cent, to end at 23,777.80.

The broader markets also mirrored the buying enthusiasm in benchmarks, as the Nifty Midcap 100 settled 2.02 per cent higher, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 closed 1.67 per cent up. Nifty 500 and Nifty 250 indices also gained 1.14 per cent and 2.68 per cent, respectively.

Among the sectoral indices, Nifty IT rose 2.78 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty, which gained 2.75 per cent. Nifty Auto was up 1.92 per cent,. Nifty Media also rose 3.35 per cent. Nifty Bank, which tracks the 12 most valuable and liquid banking stocks, closed 0.82 per cent higher.

On the other hand, Nifty Metal and Nifty FMCG closed marginally in red. Except these two, all other sectoral indices settled in green.