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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US service member missing after Iran shot down fighter jet rescued
Washington (AP): A US service member who had been missing since Iran shot down a fighter jet has been rescued, President Donald Trump wrote in a social media post early Sunday.
The crew member had been missing since Friday, when Iran downed a US F-15E Strike Eagle. A second crew member was rescued earlier.
Trump wrote that the aviator is injured but “will be just fine,” adding that he took refuge “on the treacherous mountains of Iran.”
Trump added that the rescue involved “dozens of aircraft” and that US had been monitoring his location “24 hours a day, and diligently planning for his rescue.”
The war began with joint US-Israel strikes on February 28 and has killed thousands, shaken global markets, cut off key shipping routes and spiked fuel prices. Both sides have threatened, and hit, civilian targets, bringing warnings of possible war crimes.
The fighter jet was the first US aircraft to have crashed in Iranian territory since the conflict in late February.
Trump said last week that the US had “decimated” Iran and would finish the war “very fast.”
Two days later, Iran shot down two US military planes, showing the ongoing perils of the bombing campaign and the ability of a degraded Iranian military to continue to hit back.
The other jet to go down was a US A-10 attack aircraft. Neither the status of the crew nor exactly where it crashed was immediately known.
A frantic US search-and-rescue operation unfolded after the crash of the F-15E jet on Friday, focusing on a mountainous region in Iran's southwestern province of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad.
Iran also promised a reward for anyone who turned in the “enemy pilot.” Iran's joint military command on Saturday said that it also struck two US Black Hawk helicopters Friday, but The Associated Press couldn't independently verify that.
