Sensex recovers 315 pts on value buying in consumer durables, auto shares

MUMBAI: Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded on Friday after value buying in blue-chip banking, oil & gas, and auto shares following recent sharp losses.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 315.20 points, or 0.43 per cent, to settle at 73,895.74 with 19 of its constituents ending higher and 11 down. During the day, it hit a high of 73,968.05 and a low of 73,477.77, gyrating 490.28 points. The index had slid to an over three-month low in the previous session.

The 50-share NSE Nifty was up 77.40 points, or 0.34 per cent, to end at 23,140.50. As many as 34 Nifty stocks advanced, 15 closed lower and one remained unchanged.

Among the Sensex firms, Axis Bank rose the most, climbing by 2.82 per cent. Mahindra & Mahindra jumped 2.24 per cent, Asian Paints 1.93 per cent, Bajaj Finance 1.21 per cent, HCL Tech 1.17 per cent and Titan 1.01 per cent.

Trent was the biggest loser, dropping by 1.41 per cent. Infosys, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and Tata Steel were also among the laggards.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 1.10 per cent to USD 105.4 per barrel.

"Selective bargain hunting after the recent pullback helped the market retain a positive bias, though gains remained confined to a narrow trading range. The ability of benchmark indices to sustain above the psychologically important 23,000 level reflects domestic resilience and support from strong domestic liquidity," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research, Religare Broking, said, "Markets witnessed a volatile session on Friday and ended with modest gains, recovering partially from the sharp sell-off seen in the previous session."

The recovery remained measured as investors continued to monitor elevated global yields, crude oil prices and persistent foreign selling, Mishra added.

Broader market indices closed on a mixed note as the BSE SmallCap Select index edged higher by 0.11 per cent, while MidCap Select index declined 0.62 per cent.

Among BSE sectoral indices, Consumer Durables jumped 1.14 per cent, Auto 0.95 per cent, Realty 0.65 per cent, Power 0.53 per cent, Industrials 0.53 per cent and Utilities 0.42 per cent.

Hospitals, Telecommunication, Oil & Gas and Housing Finance were the laggards.

"Indian equities staged a measured rebound on Friday following Thursday’s sharp decline, as reports of progress towards a phased US–Iran agreement improved sentiment. Selective buying in banks and automobiles also helped the benchmark indices recover from a cautious opening," Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth, a Research Analyst firm, said.

On the weekly front, the BSE benchmark declined 399.22 points, or 0.53 per cent, and the Nifty dipped 205.9 points, or 0.88 per cent.

"Indian equity benchmarks closed higher, navigating a choppy, range-bound session as the market attempted to find its footing after yesterday’s sharp sell-off. Some relief came from softer crude oil prices, with WTI holding in the USD 92–93 range," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

In Asian markets, Nikkei 225 index ended in positive territory, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index settled lower. Markets in China and South Korea were closed due to a holiday.

Markets in Europe were trading higher. US markets ended mostly lower on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 5,027.36 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

On Thursday, the Sensex tanked 1,247.71 points, or 1.67 per cent, to settle at 73,580.54. The Nifty dropped 383.70 points, or 1.64 per cent, to end at 23,063.10.