West Bengal-linked stocks traded mixed as early trends show a majority for BJP. Emami Realty jumped 4.99 per cent, Emami was up 3.13 per cent, while Tata Consumer was up 2.25 per cent. 

On the downside, Garden Reach fell 2.61 per cent, Greenply lost 1.23 per cent, while Greenpanel and UCO Bank were both down 0.52 per cent respectively. 

Indian shares opened higher on Monday, supported by easing oil prices after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would start helping free ships stranded in the Gulf, while reactions to earnings and key assembly election results remain in focus.

All 16 major sectors advanced at the open. Auto index rose 1.7 per cent, leading the sectoral gains. Hero MotoCorp and Maruti Suzuki gained 2 per cent and 4 per cent, respectively, on upbeat monthly sales data. The broader small-caps and mid-caps rose 1 per cent each. 

Both the Nifty and the Sensex fell about 0.7 per cent on Thursday, while the rupee hit a record low after crude oil prices jumped on fears of an escalation in the Iran war.

Those worries have now eased a bit after U.S. President Donald Trump said the United States would begin an effort to free up ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude, which jumped to a four-year high of $126.41 a barrel last week, has eased to about $109.

The rupee opened 3 paise lower against the US dollar at 94.95. It settled at 94.92 dollars when markets closed for the week on Thursday. 

Election Results 2026 LIVE Updates: Exit polls predict a close competition between Trinamool Congress and BJP in West Bengal

The NSE Nifty50 surged 197 points, or 0.82 per cent to quote at 24,194.

The BSE Sensex opened on Monday with a gain of more than 637 points, or 0.83 per cent, at 77,550 in early morning deals.

Sensex opens 700 points higher, Nifty up by over 200 points as counting underway for state elections.

Stock markets this week are likely to be driven by the outcome of state elections and high crude oil prices amid the Middle East conflict, according to analysts. 

Counting of votes for the five assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry is underway on Monday. 

"The most immediate catalyst will be the outcome of key state elections, with investors closely watching whether the ruling party at the Centre can wrest West Bengal from Trinamool Congress and make meaningful inroads into Opposition-ruled Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) currently has a limited presence," Hariprasad K, research analyst and founder, Livelong Wealth, told Times of India.

With counting of votes underway across West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry on Monday, traders are bracing for a politically charged start to the week. Analysts, however, suggest that investors shouldn't get swayed by early election trends and stay focused on crude oil prices, foreign fund flows and key technical levels. 

FIIs are foreign institutional investors, while DIIs are domestic institutional investors. 

FIIs were the net sellers of shares worth Rs 8,047.86 crore. DIIs were the net buyers of shares worth Rs 3,487.10 crore on April 30, 2026, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.

The trends on Gift Nifty show a positive start for Indian benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty 50 today. 

The Gift Nifty was trading around the 24,252 level, a premium of nearly 154 points from the Nifty futures’ previous close.

The price of 24-carat gold is at Rs 1,51,560 per 10 grams, rising 1.52 per cent from yesterday. 

The 24-carat gold rate in India is Rs 1,51,300 per 10 grams, while the 18-carat gold is at Rs 1,13,670. 

On COMEX, the precious metal was trading at a price of Rs 4,609.80 an ounce, falling 0.75 per cent.

The silver rate in India saw a spike of 5.45 per cent at Rs 2.50 lakh per kilogram.

On COMEX, the price of silver saw a 0.18 per cent decline on Monday to trade at $76.29 per troy ounce. 

Silver had surged to record highs in January amid geopolitical tensions.

Gold prices nudged lower on Monday, weighed down by inflation worries that clouded the U.S. monetary policy outlook, while markets awaited developments in US-Iran peace negotiations.

Iranian state media reported that Washington conveyed its response to Iran's 14-point proposal via Pakistan, and that Tehran was now reviewing it.

Oil prices eased but held above $100 a barrel, with the lack of clarity around a potential U.S.-Iran peace deal remaining in focus. 

Increasing oil prices could encourage central banks to hold interest rates higher for longer, which would pressure non-yielding assets such as gold as investors turn to alternate options like Treasury yields that offer better returns.

Shares edged higher while oil prices flatlined in Asia on Monday, as investors drew comfort from signs of patchy progress in settling the Middle East conflict at the start of a week packed with earnings and key economic data.

Brent crude futures were flat at $108.30 per barrel, having recovered from an initial drop of more than 2 per cent, while U.S. crude was steady at $102.01.

Dealers noted a bulk carrier had reported being attacked by multiple small craft while transiting Iran's Sirik on Sunday, and it was not clear how many ships would try and run the Strait of Hormuz even with Navy protection.

A holiday in Japan made for thin trading conditions, leaving Nikkei futures up only modestly at 59,630 versus a cash close of 59,513. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.6 per cent, while South Korean stocks returned from holiday with a jump of 2.6 per cent.

EUROSTOXX 50 futures and DAX futures each added 0.1 per cent, while FTSE futures dipped 0.4 per cent.