Sensex climbs 147 points as rupee firms; auto, metal stocks rally
The benchmark indices ended higher on Friday aided by strong gains in automobiles and metal stocks after the rupee firmed against US dollar. The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 38,390, up 147 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 11,589, up 52 points.
Among the sectoral indices, the Nifty Auto index settled 2.2 per cent higher led by a rise in the share prices of Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, Mahindra and Mahindra, and Tata Motors. Nifty Metal index, too, rose 1.9 per cent led by MOIL and Jindal Steel & Power.
The rupee was trading higher by 24 paise to 71.75 against the US currency in late morning deals on Friday due to sustained bouts of dollar selling from banks and exporters. Earlier, the rupee resumed slightly higher at 71.95 against yesterday’s closing level of 71.99 a dollar at the interbank foreign exchange market here.
Shares of YES Bank hit an over four-month low of Rs 322 per share, down 5% on the BSE on the back of heavy volumes. The stock was the largest loser among the S&P BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 index.