Sensex advances 270 pts on fag-end buying in banking stocks, gains in Asian peers
Mumbai, Jul 8 (PTI): Benchmark BSE Sensex closed higher by 270 points on Tuesday, helped by late-day buying in banking and select IT shares as well as positive trends in the Asian markets.
After moving in a narrow range for most of the session, the 30-share barometer rose by 270.01 points or 0.32 per cent to close at 83,712.51. As many as 18 of its constituents ended higher and 12 lower.
The 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 61.20 points or 0.24 per cent to settle at 25,522.50, after a muted trading session.
Stock markets moved in a range for most of the session before the emergence of value buying in the pre-close session. Investors are awaiting definitive progress on the proposed India-US trade even as the US extended the suspension of reciprocal tariffs until August 1, experts said.
From the Sensex firms, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Eternal, Asian Paints, NTPC, Bharat Electronics Ltd, Adani Ports, Infosys and State Bank of India were among the major gainers.
However, Titan tumbled over 6 per cent. Trent, Axis Bank, Maruti and Hindustan Unilever were also among the laggards.
The US is close to making a trade deal with India, President Donald Trump has said.
"Now, we've made a deal with the United Kingdom, we've made a deal with China… We're close to making a deal with India. Others we met with and we don't think we're going to be able to make a deal, so we just sent them a letter. If you want to play ball, this is what you have to pay," Trump said on Monday.
The remarks came as the Trump administration sent out the first tranche of "letters" to various countries on Monday detailing the tariffs that the US will impose on products from those countries entering America.
The countries that got these letters, signed by Trump, were Bangladesh, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand, and Tunisia.
In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled in the positive territory.
"The Indian equity market remained largely range-bound as investors awaited definitive progress on the India–US trade agreement. While sentiment remains cautiously optimistic about a potential deal, the lack of formal confirmation has restrained fresh buying activity.
"Moreover, the US decision to extend the deadline for implementing 25% tariffs on key trading partners has led investors to adopt a more defensive approach," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.
The BSE smallcap gauge declined 0.17 per cent while midcap index ended flat, up by just 0.01 per cent.
Among BSE sectoral indices, realty jumped 1.08 per cent, bankex (0.72 per cent), power (0.70 per cent), services (0.68 per cent), utilities (0.68 per cent) and financial services (0.45 per cent).
Consumer Durables dropped 1.68 per cent, telecommunication (0.47 per cent), auto (0.37 per cent), and consumer discretionary (0.09 per cent).
European markets were trading on a mixed note. The US markets ended lower on Monday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.59 per cent to USD 69.17 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 321.16 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also bought stocks worth Rs 1,853.39 crore.
After oscillating between highs and lows on Monday, the Sensex finally ended 9.61 points, or 0.01 per cent, up at 83,442.50. The Nifty ended unchanged at 25,461.30.
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Plea about 'threat' to Rahul Gandhi filed without his consent, to be withdrawn: Lawyer
Pune, Aug 13 (PTI): Hours after filing a plea in a court here claiming apprehension of threat to Rahul Gandhi from the followers of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the Congress leader's lawyer on Wednesday said it was filed without Gandhi's consent, and would be withdrawn.
He will submit another application on Thursday to withdraw the `Pursis' or the application filed before Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Amol Shinde, said Advocate Milind Pawar.
Pawar is representing Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case filed by Satyaki Savarkar, grand-nephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, over certain statements made by the Congress leader against the late freedom fighter and Hindutva ideologue.
He drafted the application without consulting Gandhi and the latter has taken a "strong exception to the filing of this Pursis and expressed his disagreement with its contents", the lawyer said in a press release late in the evening.
The application filed by advocate Pawar earlier in the day said that complainant Satyaki Savarkar had admitted that he is also a direct descendant, through maternal lineage, of Nathuram Godse and Gopal Godse, principal accused in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
Gandhi is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and recently held a press conference in Delhi, placing before the nation evidence of electoral fraud by the Election Commission, the application said.
"Furthermore, during the parliamentary debate on the subject of Hindutva, there was a heated exchange between the Prime Minister and Shri Rahul Gandhi, a matter well known to the public. Against this backdrop, there is little doubt that the complainant, his great-grandfathers (the Godses), those connected with the ideology of Vinayak Savarkar, and some followers of Savarkar who are presently in power, may harbor hostility or resentment towards Gandhi," the application said.
"In light of the documented history of violent and anti-constitutional tendencies linked to the complainant's lineage, and considering the prevailing political climate, there exists a clear, reasonable, and substantial apprehension that Rahul Gandhi may face harm, wrongful implication, or other forms of targeting by persons subscribing to the ideology of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar," the application stated.
The Pune court has already granted bail to Rahul Gandhi in the defamation case. The trial is yet to begin.
Reacting to the development, Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, Satyaki Savarkar's lawyer, asked why the application was filed in the first place. "This is nothing but an attempt to delay the trial by moving such frivolous pleas," he said.
Satyaki Savarkar has filed a defamation complaint against Rahul Gandhi, alleging that in a speech made in London in March 2023, the Congress leader claimed that V D Savarkar had written in a book that he and five to six of his friends once beat up a Muslim man and he (Savarkar) felt happy.
No such incident ever took place, and V D Savarkar never wrote any such thing anywhere, the complaint claimed.
