Stock markets rally: Sensex jumps 1,200 pts, Nifty reclaims 25K peak after 7 months
Mumbai, May 15 (PTI): Benchmark BSE Sensex soared by 1,200 points while NSE Nifty closed above the 25,000 mark for the first time in seven months on Thursday following across-the-board buying triggered by expectations of potential trade deal between India and the US.
Rising for the second day, the 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 1,200.18 points or 1.48 per cent to settle at a seven-month high of 82,530.74 with 29 of constituents ending higher.
The index moved in a range in the first half but picked up momentum in the afternoon session following sharp gains in banking, auto, IT and oil & gas shares. Sensex rallied 1,387.58 points or 1.70 per cent to hit a day's high of 82,718.14 in the second half of the session.
The NSE Nifty surged 395.20 points or 1.60 per cent to settle at a seven-month high of 25,062.10. The 50-issue index had closed above 25,000 on October 15, 2024, previously.
"The market staged a robust rebound, closing with substantial gains, driven by a decline in domestic inflation and positive signals from the US regarding a potential trade agreement with India," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments said.
Rate-sensitive sectors such as automobiles and real estate led the rally, supported by upbeat industry forecasts, Nair said adding that investor attention is now turning to the upcoming speech by the Federal Reserve Chair, which is anticipated to provide further clarity on the future policy trajectory, particularly in light of the recent easing in U.S. inflation data.
US President Donald Trump on Thursday claimed that India has offered to drop all tariffs on American goods.
Among Sensex shares, Tata Motors was the biggest gainer climbing by over 4 per cent. HCL Tech, Adani Ports, Eternal, Maruti, Reliance Industries and Asian Paints were among the gainers. HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel and Infosys added to the rally.
IndusInd Bank emerged as the only laggard.
Broader markets also closed higher with the BSE smallcap gauge climbing 0.94 per cent and midcap index by 0.67 per cent.
All sectoral indices ended higher, with realty surging 1.87 per cent, auto (1.86 per cent), services (1.85 per cent), industrials (1.62 per cent), metal (1.60 per cent), consumer discretionary (1.57 per cent) and commodities (1.51 per cent).
"While benchmark indices gyrated sharply in early trades, it quickly regained the lost momentum and rallied sharply thereafter on all-around buying support despite pessimism in European and other Asian bourses," Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities Ltd, said.
As many as 2,639 stocks advanced while 1,325 declined and 150 remained unchanged on the BSE.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled lower. Markets in Europe were trading on a mixed note.
US markets ended on a mixed note on Wednesday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude dropped 3.65 per cent to USD 63.68 a barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 931.80 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
On Wednesday, the BSE Sensex climbed 182.34 points or 0.22 per cent to settle at 81,330.56. The Nifty rose by 88.55 points or 0.36 per cent to 24,666.90.
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Rupee hits all-time low for second time in a week
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee depreciated 31 paise to settle at 91.99 against the US dollar on Wednesday, touching the lowest closing level for the second time in less than a week, amid increased month-end demand for the greenback.
Forex traders said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe offered quiet reassurance. However, increased month-end demand for the American currency as well as the ongoing geopolitical tensions dented investors' sentiments.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 91.60 and touched an early high of 91.50, but pared all the gains to touch an intra-day low of 91.99 against the greenback.
The domestic unit settled 31 paise down, revisiting its lowest-ever closing level of 91.99 against the greenback. The Indian currency previously ended at this level on January 23 when it also hit its all-time intraday low of 92 against the US dollar.
On Tuesday, the rupee rebounded from its all-time low levels and gained 22 paise to close at 91.68 against the US dollar.
Analysts said the rupee opened higher as the US dollar index softened and a long-awaited trade breakthrough with Europe bolstered investor sentiment.
India and the European Union on Tuesday announced the conclusion of negotiations for the free trade agreement (FTA), under which a number of domestic sectors such as apparel, chemicals and footwear will get duty-free entry into the 27-nation bloc, while the EU will get access to the Indian market at concessional duty for cars and wines, an official said.
The deal has been dubbed the "mother of all deals" as it will create a market of about 2 billion people.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07 per cent lower at 96.14.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.43 per cent lower at USD 67.28 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 487.20 points to settle at 82,344.68, while Nifty surged 167.35 points to 25,342.75.
Foreign Institutional Investors turned net buyers and purchased equities worth Rs 480.26 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.
