Stock markets rally for 4th day; Sensex climbs nearly 371 points on GST reform bid
Mumbai, Aug 19 (PTI): Rising for the fourth consecutive day, benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed higher on Tuesday following gains in oil major Reliance Industries and Tata Motors amid prevailing optimism over sweeping GST reforms and easing geopolitical worries.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped by 370.64 points or 0.46 per cent to settle at 81,644.39. During the day, it spurted by 482.13 points or 0.59 per cent to 81,755.88.
The 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 103.70 points or 0.42 per cent to 24,980.65.
Optimism prevailed in the market, buoyed by plans for big bang reforms in the GST regime by Diwali and easing geopolitical worries, analysts said.
Among Sensex firms, Tata Motors rose the most by 3.5 per cent while Adani Ports gained 3.16 per cent. Reliance Industries rose by 2.82 per cent. Eternal, Tech Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Hindustan Unilever and Maruti were also among the gainers.
However, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid, Mahindra & Mahindra and HCL Tech were among the laggards.
"The national market continued the renewed momentum, buoyed by expectations of GST rationalisation and a recent upgrade in India's credit rating. Additional optimism came from signs of easing geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine, shifting the near-term outlook from consolidation to a more constructive stance," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments, said.
The BSE midcap and smallcap indices jumped 0.97 per cent each.
All BSE sectoral indices ended higher. Oil & Gas climbed 1.49 per cent, followed by energy (1.48 per cent), auto (1.45 per cent), consumer discretionary (1.25 per cent), services (1.12 per cent) and telecommunication (1.04 per cent).
As many as 2,630 advanced while 1,437 declined and 165 remained unchanged on the BSE.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled lower.
Markets in Europe were trading higher. The US markets ended on a flat note on Monday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.93 per cent to USD 65.98 a barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 550.85 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.
On Monday, the Sensex jumped 676.09 points or 0.84 per cent to settle at 81,273.75. The Nifty climbed 245.65 points or 1 per cent to end at 24,876.95.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
