Indian equity benchmarks extended their winning streak to a second consecutive session on Friday, with the BSE Sensex surging over 800 points and the Nifty closing above the 24,200 mark. The rally was fueled by strong gains in heavyweight stocks such as Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, and HDFC Bank, along with a boost from information technology (IT) shares after Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) reported a rise in its June-quarter net profit and signaled an improvement in demand.
Sensex and Nifty Close Higher
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 827.57 points, or 1.08 percent, to settle at 77,569.39. During the trading session, it soared 900.41 points, or 1.17 percent, to an intraday high of 77,642.23. The broader 50-share NSE Nifty surged 244.10 points, or 1.02 percent, to end at 24,206.90.
Both indices had gained on Thursday as well, with the Sensex climbing 238.22 points, or 0.31 percent, to close at 76,741.82, and the Nifty rising 80.75 points, or 0.34 percent, to 23,962.80.
Key Drivers of the Rally
Among the top Sensex gainers were Reliance Industries, Tech Mahindra, Bharat Electronics, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, and Infosys. The rally was broad-based, with buying interest seen across sectors. TCS ended 1 percent higher after the country's largest IT services company reported a 4.61 percent increase in its June-quarter net profit to Rs 13,349 crore on Thursday. The company also guided towards an improvement in demand, which had been impacted by the West Asia crisis, returning in the ongoing quarter.
Easing crude oil prices also supported market sentiment. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dipped 0.30 percent to USD 76.07 per barrel.
Laggards and Global Cues
On the downside, laggards from the blue-chip pack included Eternal, Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, and Trent. In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended higher, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite index settled lower. Markets in Europe were trading on a mixed note, while US markets ended higher on Thursday.
Foreign Investor Activity
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 532.86 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data. Despite the selling by foreign investors, domestic buying momentum kept the markets afloat.
