Rupee Strengthens by 34 Paise
The benchmark domestic equity indices today extended their upward momentum for the sixth consecutive session to settle with gains of over one per cent each. The market sentiment was driven by a rally in the banking, financial services and realty sectors amid renewed optimism over a reversal in foreign fund outflows and bargain buying. The broader market indices at the BSE also logged gains.
The 30-share Sensex climbed 1,078.87 points or 1.40 per cent to settle at 77,984.38. The index scaled an intra-day high of 78,107.23 on Monday.
Mirroring the Sensex, Nifty50 settled higher by 307.95 points or 1.32 per cent at 23,658.35. The index reached an intra-day high of 23,708.75, while intra-day low levels were recorded at 23,433.50. With this the Market capitalisation of listed companies on the NSE rose to $ 4.79 trillion or ₹ 410.79 lakh crore. Monday ended in favor of the bulls, as 24 out of the 30 constituent stocks of BSE Sensex settled higher, led by NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), Tech Mahindra, and Power Grid Corp, with gains of up to 4.63 per cent. Conversely, Nestle India, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Zomato, IndusInd Bank, and Titan were the 6 constituent stocks of Sensex that ended lower by up to 2.73 per cent.
Among the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap100 and Smallcap100 indices settled higher by over 1 per cent each.
Banking shares stole the show among the sectoral indices, with PSU banks leading the charge, as the Nifty PSU Bank index ended higher by 3.18 per cent. Bank Nifty, and the Nifty Private Bank index also settled with gains of over 2 per cent each.
Among others, barring the Nifty Media index, all the sectoral indices on the NSE settled with gains of up to 2 per cent.
The 30-share index at the Bombay Stock Exchange, Sensex, surged 1,079 points, or 1.4 per cent to close at 77,984. The National Stock Exchange Nifty-50 jumped 308 points, or 1.32 per cent to settle at 23,658. In the Forex market, the rupee today strengthened by 34 paise to close at 85 rupees and 64 paise against the US dollar.
In the Indian Bullion Market, 24-karat gold was trading at 88,130 rupees per 10 grams, while silver 999 fine was trading at 98,330 rupees per kilogram a short while ago. Brent Crude was trading at 72 dollars and 66 cents per barrel. WTI Crude was trading at 68 dollars and 81 cents per barrel when reports last came in.