The Indian stock market is on an upward trend today, January 31, ahead of the Union Budget 2025, which will be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tomorrow, February 1. The market has given a thumbs up to the CEA’s call for deregulation both at Centre and State level and need for domestic growth drivers.
Both the Sensex and Nifty are firm with the Nifty holding above key support levels. During intraday trading, the Sensex surged by over 700 points, and the Nifty 50 climbed by 200 points by 13:40, following the tabling of the Economic Survey 2024-25 in Parliament, marking the start of the Budget 2025 session.
As of 14:34 IST, the Sensex is at 77,309.71, up by 549.90 points or 0.72%, while the Nifty is at 23,451.20, up by 201 points or 0.86%.
Let’s take a look at the 3 key reasons behind today’s market rally:
1. FM Nirmala Sitharaman tables Economic Survey 2024-25 in Parliament
The Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, has tabled India’s Economic Survey for the fiscal year 2024-25. The survey highlighted the current state of the Indian economy and offered projections for FY26, expecting GDP growth to range between 6.3% and 6.8%. It also anticipates that inflation will remain manageable, with stable consumption levels and an increase in rural demand.
In FY25, India’s real GDP growth is estimated to be 6.4%, closely in line with the decadal average. The survey also noted a decline in retail inflation, from 5.4% in FY24 to 4.9% in the first nine months of FY25.
2. Systematic deregulation of industries
The Economic Survey 2024-25 further pointed out the importance of reducing unnecessary regulations to boost growth and innovation in the country, and make India more competitive globally.
It added that deregulating industries, especially SMEs, or the ‘Mittelstand’, will help them grow stronger and weather economic challenges. A more open regulatory system could also help India achieve its manufacturing goals and attract long term investments.
Furthermore, the survey also mentioned that India’s industrial growth depends on removing regulations, focusing on R&D, and improving skills in the workforce.
3. Unemployment rate drops in India
The Economic Survey pointed out that the unemployment rate in India has been going down. In 2023-24, the national unemployment rate dropped to 3.2% from 6% in 2017-18. The urban unemployment rate also fell slightly to 6.4% in Q2 FY25, compared to 6.6% in Q2 FY24. This shows that more jobs are being created in the country.
The survey suggested that more job growth can happen if there are changes in rules that give people and businesses more freedom. It highlights the need for the Ease of Doing Business 2.0 plan and calls for new reforms to make business regulations simpler.