After a one-day blip, benchmark indices once again slipped into the negative territory on Thursday, pulled down by heavyweights such as Reliance Industries (RIL), HDFC Bank, TCS, HUL and Asian Paints. Further, investors awaited more clarity on US President Donald Trump’s statement ahead of his visit to India that the two countries were working on a major trade deal.
The S&P BSE Sensex lost 153 points or 0.37 per cent to settle at 41,170, with Asian Paints (down over 2 per cent) being the top loser and IndusInd Bank (up over 3.5 per cent) the biggest gainer.
NSE’s Nifty50 index ended the session at 12,081, down 45 points or 0.37 per cent.
Among individual stocks, IRCTC gained over 5 per cent to end at 1,928 . Adani Gas rallied 13 per cent to Rs 185.50 apiece on the BSE after media reports said Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) disposed November 29 showcause notice to the company and the regulator has approved TOTAL’s 37 per cent stake buy in the company.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap index added 62.5 points or 0.4 per cent to 15,694 while the S&P BSE SmallCap index rallied 0.5 per cent to settle at 14,747.
On the sectoral front, IT stocks bled the most, followed by FMCG and media counters. On the other hand, PSU bank stocks advanced the most. The Nifty PSU Bank index climbed 1 per cent to 2,169 levels.
Markets remained shut on Friday on account of Mahashivratri.
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Benchmark indices ended positive for a seventh straight session on Friday led by IT firms, while bonds dipped on market talk of a potential sovereign ratings upgrade by Standard & Poor’s (S&P) later in the day.
Speculation about an S&P rating upgrade on India surfaced late on Thursday. This comes after a surprise upgrade by Moody’s last week.
Foreign investors have net bought $2.33 billion worth of Indian shares in November so far.
The S&P BSE index ended the day at 33,679, up 91 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 10,389, up 40 points. Infosys, Bajaj Auto, GAIL and Aurobindo Pharma were the top gainers, while BHEL, SBI, Hindalco and Vedanta were the top losers.
The S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices hit their respective new high on the BSE on Friday, following an extending rally in infrastructure, auto ancillary, education, textiles and public sector banks.
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Benchmark indices scuttled between gains and losses to finally settle the day marginally higher as 2-day GST Council meet ends where rates for various goods and services were decided.
The government today decided that most of the services would be taxed at the rate of 18% under the GST regime. Rates for more than 1,200 items under the GST were announced with products like hair oil, soaps and toothpaste down to 18% from 22-24%.
Earlier in the day, S&P BSE Sensex rose as much as 278 points to reach a fresh high of 30,712, surpassing its previous milestone of 30,691 hit on May 17 as FMCG surged on GST boost. The index has hit a new high for the fourth time in five sessions.
The S&P BSE Sensex settled at 30,465, up 30 points, while the broader Nifty50 ended at 9,427, down 1 point.
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