markets
Markets opened on a high note in what seems to be a repeat of 2014 when markets cheered a clear mandate for the BJP.Reuters

A day after exit poll results 2019 predicted a clear mandate for the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government, domestic stock markets on Monday, May 20, opened on a high note in what seems to be a repeat of 2014 when markets cheered a comfortable majority for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

By 12:15 hrs, the S&P BSE Sensex jumped 1,032 points at 38,963 while the Nifty 50 climbed 308 points to 11,715. It has been reported widely that the early morning jump has made investors richer by Rs 3 lakh crore.

The exits polls, following the mammoth seven-phase voting for the Lok Sabha 2019 elections, showed 339 and 365 seats for Modi's NDA in the 545-member lower house of parliament. This time Prime Minister Narendra Modi will retain back to power with a bigger majority in the parliament, with financials leading the charge.

Modi has faced severe criticism for weak job growth and farm prices but the Prime Minister turned the campaign into a fight for national security after tensions with nuclear-armed neighbour Pakistan escalated earlier this year.

"I expect another 2-3% rally in the market in the next 3-4 days based on the cue," said Samrat Dasgupta, a fund manager at Esquire Capital Investment Advisors as quoted by news agency Reuters.

"But once the results are out on Thursday, even if it is as expected, I don't see much upside to the market."

"The economy is passing through a rough patch because a lot of data indicators are showing a slowdown, so people will wait for announcements from the new govt/cabinet to see what policies will be made," Dasgupta said.

The broader NSE Nifty was up 2.22% at 11,660.45 as of 0347 GMT, while the benchmark BSE Sensex was 2.31% higher at 38,807.88.

India's NSE stock futures listed on the Singapore exchange, an indicator for the broader NSE Nifty, was up 2.02% as of 0348 GMT, after rising as much as 2.76%.

Financial stocks led gains, boosted by Yes Bank Ltd, which was up 6.2%, and State Bank of India Ltd, which surged 5.4%.

The Nifty IT index was down 1%, dragged by Infosys Ltd's 1.3% fall, as the rupee rallied.

The partially convertible rupee was trading at 69.49/50 per dollar at 0343 GMT, after rising to 69.3550 earlier, making it up 1.2 percent on the day. The gain, if sustained, would be the highest since December.

The rupee had closed Friday at 70.22. Further gains in the rupee will also depend on flows into the stock markets.

The benchmark 10-year bond yield was trading at 7.30 percent, down 6 basis points on the day after briefly falling to a low of 7.28 percent.

(With inputs from agencies)