Sensex, Nifty post mild gains over hopes of US-Iran deal
The Indian equity markets posted mild gains early on Friday tracking positive global cues, over optimism regarding US-Iran peace negotiations.
The stock market extended its rally for a third consecutive session on Wednesday, with the Nifty crossing the 23,850 mark, supported by broad-based buying across most sectors.
At the close, the Sensex was up 633.29 points or 0.83 per cent at 76,704.13, while the Nifty rose 196.65 points or 0.83 per cent to 23,777.80.
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Further, the broader markets also outperformed, with the Nifty Midcap 100 gaining 2 per cent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 rising 1.6 per cent. The total market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies increased to more than Rs 443 lakh crore from Rs 438 lakh crore earlier.
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Among sectors, all indices except FMCG and metal ended higher.
The key sectors, including realty, IT, auto, media, capital goods, consumer durables, telecom, and infra, rose in the range of 1 to 3 per cent.
On the Nifty, key gainers included Jio Financial, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Eternal, and M&M, while losers included Coal India, NTPC, HUL, Cipla and Sun Pharma.
More than 200 stocks touched their 52-week lows on the BSE, including Gujarat State Petro, Cipla, Tata Chemicals, Gujarat Gas, Honeywell Automation, and Procter and Gamble Hygiene and Health Care, among others.
The Indian rupee also registered a sharp fall against the US dollar, breaching the 92.50 mark for the first time and finishing at a record closing low of 92.63.
IT stocks witnessed a sharp rebound in the trading session, with key players like Infosys and HCL Technologies leading the gains, rising over 4 per cent, while Tata Consultancy Services and Wipro jumped 3.6 per cent and 3.17 per cent, respectively.
Among pharma stocks, Mankind Pharma rose 1.7 per cent after acquiring the Rivotril brand for India and Strides Pharma Science’s share price rose 3 per cent after entering into agreements with Sandoz AG, Switzerland.
In the Asian market, Japan’s Nikkei 225 surged 2.9 per cent to 55,239.40 after stronger-than-expected export data for February, while South Korea’s Kospi jumped 5 per cent to 5,925.03.
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