The benchmark domestic equity indices today ended with modest gains, continuing their upward movement for the sixth straight session, supported by Realty, Consumer Durables and FMCG sectors.
The 30-share index at the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, rose 187 points, or 0.24 percent to close at 79,596. The National Stock Exchange Nifty-50 added 42 points, or 0.17 percent to settle at 24,167. The broader market indices at the BSE outperformed the frontline indices. Both the Mid-Cap index and the Small-Cap index gained over 0.8 per cent each.
The BSE Sensex started the day with a positive gap of 320 points at 79,728, but soon pared gains and slipped into red to a low of 79,253 – tracking steep losses in the US market. The BSE benchmark, however, snapped back and consolidated in the positive zone for the rest of the trading session, while hit an intra-day high at 79,824. The Sensex finally settled with a gain of 187 points at 79,596.
In the process, the BSE benchmark index – the Sensex – has now surged 7.8 per cent or 5,749 points in the last six straight trading sessions.
The NSE Nifty 50 index tested a low of 24,072, before jumping back to a high of 24,243. The Nifty eventually settled with a gain of 0.2 per cent or 42 points at 24,167. The NSE benchmark, which, also celebrates its 29th anniversary on Tuesday, has now rallied 7.9 per cent or 1,768 points in the last six straight days.
Among the Sensex 30 shares – FMCG major – ITC and Hindustan Unilever gained over 2 per cent each. Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Eternal (Zomato) and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the other prominent gainers.
On the other hand, IndusInd Bank shed 5 per cent after the bank reportedly roped in EY to carry out another round of forensic audit to investigate a ₹600 crore discrepancy in its microfinance portfolio. Among others, Power Grid Corporation, Bharti Airtel, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv, Adani Ports and NTPC declined in the range of 1 – 2 per cent.
The broader market outperformed the benchmark indices – with both the BSE MidCap and SmallCap gaining up to 0.8 per cent on Tuesday. The overall breadth too was fairly positive, with nearly 2,500 stocks advancing as against 1,500-odd declining shares on the BSE.
Among sectoral indices – the BSE Realty index jumped 2.4 per cent, the FMCG gained 1.9 per cent, and the Consumer Durables moved 1.4 per cent higher. On the flip side, the IT and Power indices were the notable losers.