(Representative image)
NEW DELHI: In a highly volatile trading session, equity indices ended higher Tuesday with the benchmark index BSE Sensex rising more than 250 points led by gains in metals and pharmaceuticals stocks.
The 30-share BSE index rose 273 points or 0.71 percent to close at 38,901; while the broader NSE Nifty closed 83 points or 0.73 percent higher at 11,470.
Bharti Airtel was the main winner in the sensex package, gaining as much as 6.38 percent after the Supreme Court granted telcos 10 years to pay the adjusted gross income (AGR) related fees to the government with certain terms. Bajaj Finance, Asian Paints, Tata Steel, NTPC and SBI with the other winners holding their shares up 4.42 percent.
While ONGC, Axis Bank, Tech Mahindra, Infosys and ICICI Bank were the main losers, falling as much as 3.29 percent.
On the NSE platform, the Nifty Metal and Pharma sub-indices gained as much as 3.15%.
According to traders, the market shrugged off the 23.9 percent drop in GDP (gross domestic product) and weak global signals as it rallied close to 1 percent after the previous session’s low.
“We are getting mixed signals from the data. Although India posted its worst GDP, the positive side is that the agrarian economy managed to post positive growth of 3.4% in the June quarter,” Anita Gandhi, director of the June quarter, told the news agency. Arihant Capital Markets. Reuters.
Sentiment was also supported after a survey of private companies showed that India’s manufacturing activity grew in August for the first time in five months, as easing of coronavirus restrictions spurred a rebound in domestic demand.
National stock markets have rebounded more than 50% since a virus-sparked crisis in March despite a flurry of gloomy data and rising COVID-19 infections, as huge flows of cheap capital provided by the Global central banks made deeply discounted stocks attractive.
On the currency front, the rupee strengthened 73 paise and crossed the crucial 73 mark against the US dollar, supported by a weak US currency and positive domestic values.
Meanwhile, currency data showed that foreign institutional investors sold shares worth 3,395.49 crore on a net basis on Monday.
(With contributions from the agency)
.
