Bulls held their reigns for the second consecutive day on Friday, as markets decisively stayed in the positive territory after a mild blip in the early morning trade. Pre-budget rally and decent Q3FY20 results throughout the day were the biggest factors driving the markets today. Banking counters were leading the charge from the front with HDFC twins, ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and Axis Bank being the top contributors of the gains today.
The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex surged 421 points off day’s low to hit an intra-day high of 41,697.03. At close, the Sensex settled at 41,613.19 level, up 226.79 points or 0.55 per cent. UltraTech Cement, L&T, Tech Mahindra, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the top gainers on the 30-share index, while Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, TCS, and Reliance Industries were the top laggards.
On the NSE, the Nifty50 reclaimed the 12,250-mark in the intra-day trade today and hit a high of 12,272.15. The 50-share index ended 67.90 points, or 0.56 per cent, higher at 12,248.25 mark. Sectorally, all the key indices settled in the positive territory barring Nifty IT and Pharma indices. Nifty Metal index settled 1.02 per cent higher, followed by Nifty Financial Services index (up 0.9 per cent) and Nifty Bank index (up 0.8 per cent).
Broader markets continued their outperformance on Friday as well, with the S&P BSE mid-cap index hitting its fresh 52-week high in the intra-day trade today. At close, the index was at 15,826.57 level, up 0.8 per cent. The S&P BSE small-cap index, meanwhile, settled 0.5 per cent higher at 14,848.49.
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After bouts of volatility in the last two trading sessions, markets took a breather on Friday and traded flat for better part of the day. While financial and banking counters traded in the sea of red throughout the day, index heavyweights like Reliance Industries and Bharti Airtel, that surged 3 per cent and 6 per cent, respectively in the intra-day trade today, provided the necessary support.
In the intra-day trade, the S&P BSE Sensex hit a record high of 42063.93. At close, the 30-share index was at 41,945.37 level, up 12.81 points or 0.031 per cent. Bharti Airtel, that gained over 6 per cent today, was the top gainer at close. The stock hit an over 2-year high of Rs 503.60 on the BSE amid expectations that the telecom company is poised for strong market share gain if payment due to AGR makes Vodafone Idea exit the industry. On the downside, IndusInd Bank was the top loser, down 2 per cent, due to its high exposure towards telecom companies.
On the NSE, the Nifty50 settled 3.15 points, or 0.025 per cent, lower at 12,352.35-mark. Nifty Bank, financial services, metals and IT indices settled the day in the negative territory. On the other hand, Nifty Pharma gained nearly 2 per cent.
For the week, the Sensex has advanced 0.9 per cent, while the broader Nifty50 has gained 0.8 per cent. Nifty mid-cap index, meanwhile, has risen 4 per cent during the week.
The party in the broader markets continued for the ninth straight session. The S&P BSE mid-cap index was up 0.5 per cent at 15,703 level. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE small-cap index ended at 14,708.70 level, up 0.42 per cent.
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Indian equities logged gains for second straight day as positive global cues supported investment sentiment. No further rhetoric between the United States and Iran, and British Parliament’s vote to finalise Brexit divorce deal by January 31 gave boost to investment sentiment.
Indices further charged ahead and scaled intra-day high after news agency Reuters reported that US President Donald Trump could sign the Phase-1 of trade deal next week. The S&P BSE Sensex hit a high of 41,775.11 (up 322.76 points) in the intra-day deals, while NIfty50 touched 12,311.20 — also its fresh lifetime high.
At close, the Sensex was at 41,599.72 level, up 147.37 points or 0.36 per cent with ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank, and Titan being top laggards. On the other hand, Infosys, Sun Pharma and Ultra Tech Cement settled as the top gainers.
The broader Nifty50 index, on the other hand, was 40.60 points, or 0.33 per cent, higher at 12,256.50-mark at close.
Sectorally, Nifty Private Bank and Nifty Bank indices were the only indices that closed in the red, down 0.22 and 0.02 per cent, respectively. Nifty Realty and Metal indices, however, added 1.80 and 1.10 per cent, respectively by close.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE mid-cap index gained 0.4 per cent to close at 15,157.77, while the S&P BSE small-cap index advanced 0.45 per cent to end at 14,153.18.
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Following the global sell-off, Indian equity markets, too, settled lower on Friday after US military killed Iran Revolutionary Guards’ commander Qasem Soleimani in a surprise air-strike. The middle-east tensions sent Brent Crude Futures soaring, while market sentiment turned sour at D-Street.
Brent crude futures jumped nearly $3 on Friday after a US air strike in Baghdad killed top Iranian and Iraqi military commanders, sparking concerns of disruption to Middle East oil supplies. At 3:10 pm, Brent Crude Futures were at $68.62 per barrel-mark, up 3.5 per cent.
The S&P BSE Sensex, which hit an intra-day low of 41,348.68, recovered slightly in the fag-end of the session and settled 162.03 points, or 0.39 per cent, lower at 41,464.61 level. 20 of the 30 constituents ending the day in the red. Oil-linked stocks, such as paints, aviation, oil-marketing companies (OMCs), and financial counters remained under pressure.
In the intra-day trade, Hindustan Petroleum (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum (BPCL), for instance, declined 2.9 per cent each on the BSE. Reliance Industries, Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL), and Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), too, slumped up to 0.7 per cent.
On the NSE, the Nifty50 lost 55.50 points, or 0.45 per cent, to settle at 12,226.65-mark. Sectorally, Nifty PSU Bank index slipped the most, down 2 per cent at close. Besides, Nifty Bank, Auto, Private Bank indices slipped over 1 per cent. On the upside, Nifty IT index advanced 1.3 per cent on the back of a weaker rupee.
In the broader market, small-caps traded in the green territory, while mid-caps followed benchmarks. The S&P BSE mid-cap index was down 0.44 per cent, while the S&P BSE small-cap index was up 0.01 per cent at close.
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