Stock Market Today, April 15: Sensex Jumps 1,400 Points on Iran War Hope, Nifty Crosses 24,200

ndian equity markets opened strongly on Wednesday, April 15, with the BSE Sensex jumping 1,278 points (1.66%) to 78,125 in early trade, briefly touching a high of 1,422 points above the previous close. The NSE Nifty 50 surged 371 points (1.56%) to 24,214, briefly touching 24,280. The trigger: Donald Trump's statement on Fox News that the Iran war is "close to over" and the possibility of a second round of peace talks in Pakistan.

Context for today's rally: The previous session on April 13 (the last trading day before the holiday) had seen the Sensex lose 703 points after the Islamabad talks collapsed and Trump announced the Hormuz blockade. That was a reversal from earlier gains — markets had surged 3% on April 8 when the original ceasefire was announced and talks were first announced. The April 8 rally was triggered by oil prices falling 17%, which had driven IndiGo, aviation, and consumer stocks sharply higher.

For the market, the Iran war has been the dominant macro variable since late February. The Sensex has lost roughly 9–10% from its December 2025 high of 86,159, with each twist in the conflict directly moving indices. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) pulled out Rs 1,983 crore on April 13. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought Rs 2,432 crore, helping cushion the fall — and DII inflows hit an eight-month high of Rs 4.4 billion (roughly Rs 3,700 crore) in March.

Experts advising investors today are cautious despite the rally. Hitesh Tailor of Choice Equity Broking said investors should "remain disciplined and selective" amid ongoing global uncertainties, and that "buying on dips in fundamentally strong stocks may remain a prudent strategy." The Q4 FY26 earnings season is underway — TCS, Wipro, Infosys results are key near-term events. Wipro also has a buyback meeting on April 16.

Looking at sectors: Aviation stocks are the biggest beneficiaries of any de-escalation in the Iran war, as oil prices directly impact jet fuel costs. IndiGo has been one of the most volatile stocks through this period. Reliance Industries has been under pressure due to elevated export duty on diesel and aviation turbine fuel. Real estate and infrastructure plays like UltraTech Cement and L&T tend to rally on improved macro sentiment.