Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 18 (ANI): Indian stock markets opened with a strong rally on Monday as investor sentiment improved following the government's announcement of GST cuts and the sovereign rating upgrade for India by S&P Global.

The benchmark Nifty 50 index opened at 24,938.20, up 306.90 points or 1.25 per cent, while the BSE Sensex gained 727.24 points or 0.90 per cent to open at 81,324.90.

Market experts said the announcement of GST rate reduction by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has boosted confidence, particularly in the consumption sector.

Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, told ANI, 'India has two positives, one watchful cue this morning. The two positives are, the GST cuts within the next 50 days announced by the PM during his Independence Day speech, and the Sovereign Rating upgrade for India announced by S&P Global. The watchful cue is of course the US-EU-Ukraine meeting outcome tonight. The negative is that the US has pulled back from the visit of its trade delegation to India that was to start from August 25th.'

He further added 'The world is looking for geoeconomic cues from the White House meeting between US-EU-Ukraine leaders on Monday. The Alaska Summit between President Trump and President Putin did not yield a cease fire announcement, but the subsequent developments are pointing to a possible deal this week itself'.

While Trump ruled out further secondary tariffs on countries dealing in Russian energy and goods, the 25 per cent additional punitive tariffs on Indian exports to the US are still scheduled for implementation on August 27. Analysts hope that some detente with Russia may remove this overhang during the week.

Sectors expected to benefit from GST cuts include consumption, financials, autos, and consumer durables. Domestic-oriented sectors and public infrastructure investments remain the focus for investors.

In broader market indices, the Nifty 100 surged by 1.26 per cent, Nifty Midcap 100 rose 1.06 per cent, and Nifty Smallcap 100 gained 1.29 per cent at the time of reporting.

Among sectoral indices, Nifty Auto climbed more than 2 per cent, FMCG rallied 1.32 per cent, IT gained 0.92 per cent, Metal surged 1.29 per cent, Realty advanced 1.24 per cent, and Private Bank rose 1.09 per cent.

Sunil Gurjar, SEBI-registered analyst and founder of Alphamojo Financial Services, noted, 'The price is currently trading near the resistance level of 24,650. A breakout above this resistance would indicate a continuation of the uptrend. Technically, the price is trading above the 200-EMA, which further signals an uptrend. Volume buildup shows buyer interest, potentially pushing the price higher. The overall market was cautious around the 24,600 zone, weighed down by geopolitical tensions and volatile crude oil prices. This led to selective profit-booking in the Metals, Oil & Gas, and Realty sectors.'

In other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 gained 0.9 per cent, Singapore's Straits Times slipped 0.7 per cent, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.29 per cent, Taiwan Weighted gained 0.3 per cent, while South Korea's KOSPI fell 1.29 per cent. (ANI)