Markets eke out modest gains after a choppy session on fourth day, pharma stocks shine

Mumbai: Rising for the fourth straight day, benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty eked out modest gains after a choppy session on Friday amid a mixed trend in global equities and uncertainties on the geopolitical

front.

A strengthening rupee lent further support, though persistent foreign fund outflows capped the gains.

Overcoming bouts of volatility, the 30-share BSE Sensex settled 85.91 points or 0.15 per cent higher at 55,550.30.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty gained 35.55 points or 0.21 per cent to close at 16,630.45.

Pharma counters led the Sensex gainers' chart, with Sun Pharma spurting 3.82 per cent and Dr Reddy's 2.07 per cent.

Other winners included ITC, PowerGrid, Titan, Asian Paints, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv.

In contrast, Nestle, Maruti Suzuki, NTPC, Axis Bank, TCS and Tata Steel were among the laggards, shedding as much as 1.56 per cent.

On a weekly basis, the Sensex jumped 1,216.49 points or 2.23 per cent, while the Nifty advanced 385.10 or 2.37 per cent.

In the broader market, the BSE smallcap index gained 0.90 per cent and the midcap gauge went higher by 0.45 per cent in Friday's session.

Among BSE sectoral indices, healthcare emerged as the biggest gainer, jumping 2.07 per cent, followed by oil & gas, basic materials and metal.

A total of 2,076 stocks advanced, while 1,263 declined and 119 remained unchanged.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude jumped 1.93 per cent to $111.4 a

barrel. The rupee pared its initial gains and settled just 1 paisa lower at 76.44 against the US currency on Friday amid dollar demand from oil importers and state-run power

companies.