Equity benchmark Sensex on Friday rallied around 556 points, logging its best single day in two months, while Nifty closed above the 19,400 level on value-buying in power, metal and oil stocks following strong domestic macro data and global cues.
The BSE barometer closed higher by 555.75 points or 0.86% at 65,387.16 with 26 of its constituents ending in the green. The index opened higher and later touched a high of 19,435.30 in day trading. It touched a low of 64,818.37.
The broader Nifty spurted by 181.50 points or 0.94% to close at 19,435.30. As many as 44 Nifty stocks advanced while six declined. NTPC was the lead gainer among Sensex stocks, rising by 4.84%.
JSW Steel (3.37%), Tata Steel (3.33%), Maruti (3.24%), Power Grid (3.07%), IndusInd Bank (2.95%), Bajaj Finance (2.12%) and Tech Mahindra (2.22%) were among major gainers. On the other hand, Ultratech Cement, Sun Pharma, Nestle and L&T were the losers.
Official data released on Thursday showed that the Indian economy grew 7.8% in the June quarter, mainly on the back of double-digit expansion in the services sector, and retained its position as the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.5%, France’s CAC 40 edged up nearly 0.1% while Germany’s DAX was little changed. Gains in US futures supported the positive sentiment. Dow futures were up 0.3% and S&P 500 futures rose 0.2%.
Among Asian markets, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 0.3%, South Korea’s Kospi added 0.3% and the Shanghai Composite added 0.4%. Global oil price benchmark Brent Crude futures surged 1.26% to USD 87.92 per barrel. On Thursday, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers of domestic equities as they offloaded shares worth Rs 2,973.10 crore, as per exchange data.
