Markets climb on firm global trends, buying in index major ITC, Infosys and Reliance

Mumbai: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty rallied on Tuesday tracking a positive trend in the global markets and unabated foreign fund inflows.

Buying in index major Reliance Industries, Infosys and ITC also helped markets extend their previous day’s gain.

The 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 273.67 points or 0.42 per cent to settle at 65,617.84. During the day, it rallied 526.42 points or 0.80 per cent to 65,870.59.

The NSE Nifty climbed 83.50 points or 0.43 per cent to end at 19,439.40.

From the Sensex pack, Sun Pharma, Maruti, Tata Motors, ITC, Nestle, Larsen & Toubro, Infosys, Asian Paints, Titan, Tech Mahindra, Power Grid and Reliance Industries were the major gainers.

Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, HCL Technologies, State Bank of India, HDFC, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Finserv were among the laggard from the 30-share pack.

“The market now awaits the Q1 results, IT sector which kicks off tomorrow, where expectations are muted with a focus on the sustenance of margin and improvement in long-term guidance. The positivity also stems from China’s anticipated stimulus to withstand economic growth and hope on the moderation in US inflation data,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge climbed 0.97 per cent and smallcap index rallied 0.82 per cent.

Among the indices, telecommunication climbed 2.05 per cent, capital goods jumped 1.79 per cent, industrials rallied 1.56 per cent, consumer durables (1.35 per cent), power (1.34 per cent), auto (1.34 per cent), FMCG (1.21 per cent) and consumer discretionary (1.15 per cent).

Metal, commodities, financial services and bankex were the laggards.

A total of 1,935 stocks advanced while 1,549 declined and 117 remained unchanged on the BSE.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) continued their buying momentum as they bought equities worth Rs 1,197.38 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong ended in the green.

Equity markets in Europe were trading mostly in the green. The US markets ended in the positive territory on Monday.

The rupee gained 18 paise and settled for the day at 82.41 against the US dollar on Tuesday, supported by a positive trend in equity markets and steady foreign fund inflows.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.42 against the US dollar and settled at 82.41, up 18 paise over its previous

close.

During the day, the domestic unit witnessed an intra-day high of 82.32 and a low of 82.43.

This is the second straight day of rise for the rupee, during which it has gained 25 paise.

On Monday, the rupee had settled at 82.59 against the dollar.

“The Indian rupee appreciated for the second day in a row following foreign fund inflows and stronger Asian currencies,” said Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst, HDFC

Securities.

The long liquidation from speculators and expectation of the central bank intervention supported the rupee. In the near-term, spot USDINR is expected to face resistance around 82.95 and support at 82.20, Parmar said.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.22 per cent to 101.74.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.18 per cent to $77.83 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark gained 63.72 points or 0.10 per cent to settle at 65,344.17 on Monday. The Nifty advanced 24.10 points or 0.12 per cent to end at 19,355.90.