Sensex and Nifty closed strongly today.
New Delhi:
Indian equity benchmarks extended their winning momentum for the second day in a row on Thursday, led by gains in metals, consumer durables and bank stocks. Domestic indices have staged a strong rally in two back-to-back sessions amid positive global cues.
UK stocks rose amid reports that Boris Johnson may announce his resignation as British prime minister. European stocks also rose on a firming trend in US stock futures. Shares in Asia also edged higher, boosting investor sentiment in the domestic markets.
Crude oil futures today remaining at $100 a barrel also played a key role in keeping the domestic sentiment positive. Brent had posted a fall of over 9 per cent on Tuesday, allaying some inflationary concerns.
Back home, the 30-share BSE Sensex today jumped 427 points or 0.80 per cent to end at 54,178, while the broader NSE Nifty ended 143 points or 0.89 per cent higher at 16,133.
Mid- and small-cap stocks ended on a strong note as Nifty Midcap 100 gained 1.35 per cent and small-cap by 1.57 per cent.
Of the 15 sector gauges, 14 – compiled by the National Stock Exchange – settled in the green. Sub-indices Nifty Metal, Nifty Consumer Durables and Nifty Bank outperformed the NSE platform with gains of 3.79 per cent, 2.64 per cent and 1.74 per cent.
However, Nifty FMCG showed some weakness with a fall of up to 0.08 per cent.
On the stock-specific front, Hindalco was the top Nifty gainer as the stock rose 6.88 per cent to Rs 364.40. Titan, Tata Steel, JSW Steel and Tata Motors were also gainers.
Overall market breadth remained positive with 2,275 shares, while 1,015 declined on the BSE.
In the 30-share BSE index, Titan, Tata Steel, L&T, IndusInd Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, SBI, NTPC, Sun Pharma and Wipro were the top gainers in their shares. 5.69 percent.
Conversely, Dr Reddy’s, Nestle India, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserv, Maruti and UltraTech Cement remained in the red.
Besides, shares of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), the country’s largest insurer and largest domestic financial investor, closed 0.70 per cent lower at Rs 698.15.