After a week of volatility, the Sensex closed with slight gains on Friday. The domestic benchmark fluctuated between gains and losses throughout the session after closing 36.74 points or 0.06 per cent higher at 58,803.33, while the Nifty ended 3.35 points or 0.02 per cent lower at 17,539.45.
Taking a look at the top performers in the Sensex pack, HDFC was up 1.75 per cent, followed by ITC, Larsen & Toubro, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank and SBI. Meanwhile, companies like Maruti, Reliance Industries, IndusInd Bank, Nestle India, PowerGrid, Tata Steel and Infosys fell up to 1.19 per cent.
“Markets are struggling for a firm direction today as global markets were largely under pressure ahead of the release of US jobs data, which could provide insight into upcoming Fed actions.
“Oil prices ahead of the OPEC+ meeting rose on expectations of a reduction in output, despite the fact that weak global growth prospects remain a concern. A rising dollar index and rising US bond yields are driving the domestic market higher. Volatility could be reflected in the near term,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
The Sensex fell 30.54 points, or 0.05 per cent, while the Nifty lost 19.45 points or 0.11 per cent during the holiday week. “Indian markets are showing resilience despite several global constraints. While markets may remain volatile in a broad range in the near term, we remain positive on the medium to long term outlook on the back of healthy domestic macro, strong fundamentals, earnings growth and bullish. festive season.
Siddharth Khemka, Head of Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd. said, “The broader market is performing well and niche midcap segments are likely to remain flavored with action.” The broader market ended on a mixed note on Friday. The BSE smallcap gauge rose 0.04 per cent and the midcap index lost 0.35 per cent.
In the BSE sectoral index, capital goods rose 1.13 per cent, industrials 0.87 per cent, bankex 0.40 per cent and FMCG 0.33 per cent.
Metals, energy, basic materials, oil and gas, realty were among the losers. World stocks were mixed ahead of US jobs data, which would give clues about the pace of rate hikes by the Federal Reserve. The fresh Covid lockdown in China also raised fears of a new hit to global growth.
Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Seoul, Tokyo and Hong Kong closed lower, while Shanghai settled in the green. Shares in Europe were trading with gains during mid-session deals. The US markets closed mostly with gains on Thursday. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 2.01 per cent to $94.22 a barrel.
The rupee on Friday closed 26 paise lower at 79.82 (provisional) against the US currency, tracking strong dollar demand from Asian peers and importers. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded shares worth a net Rs 2,290.31 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.