Mumbai: Stock markets regained footing on Tuesday after the previous session’s massive selloff, tracking renewed buying interest in financial, bank and auto counters amid firm global cues.
Participants also cheered the government’s decision to fast-track approval for foreign-produced COVID-19 vaccines. Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine has received emergency use authorisation in India, paving the way for the third coronavirus vaccine in the country.
However, the COVID-19 situation remains worrisome and will determine market trajectory in the near term, traders said.
Building on a positive start, the 30-share BSE Sensex gained momentum in late-afternoon trade to close 660.68 points or 1.38 per cent higher at 48,544.06.
On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty surged 194 points or 1.36 per cent to finish at 14,504.80.
M&M was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying 8.02 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Maruti, IndusInd Bank, ICICI Bank, ONGC and Axis Bank.
On the other hand, TCS was the biggest laggard, slumping 4.21 per cent, a day after reporting its March quarter results.
The country’s largest tech exporter on Monday reported a 14.9 per cent jump in consolidated net profit for the March quarter to Rs 9,246 crore, but posted a marginal increase in reported post-tax profit at Rs 32,430 crore for FY21.
Dr Reddy’s, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Infosys and Nestle India were among the other losers, shedding up to 4.18 per cent.
“Market attempted to pull back from yesterday’s selloff but wasn’t that enthusiastic. IT sector broke the trend due to profit booking as initial Q4 results were in line with expectations not providing enough leeway to a highly valued sector.
“While Industrial production for February declined by 3.6 per cent primarily due to contraction in the manufacturing and mining sectors, India’s retail inflation for March also rose to 5.52 per cent. However, it did not harm the market sentiment as it was in line with the recent RBI policy forecast. How the lockdowns will affect the economy will determine the trend of the domestic market, in the short-term,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
BSE auto, metal, finance, bankex, realty and telecom indices rallied as much as 4.30 per cent, while IT, teck and healthcare indices closed with losses.
Broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices spurted up to 1.46 per cent.
World stocks perched near all-time highs ahead of US inflation data, which would offer cues on the economic recovery taking hold.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo ended on a positive note, while Shanghai was in the red.
Stock exchanges in Europe were largely trading with gains in mid-session deals.
Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.90 per cent higher at USD 63.85 per barrel.
The forex market was closed on account of ‘Gudi Padwa’.
Bourses will be shut on Wednesday for ‘Babasaheb Ambedkar Jayanti’.
Gold Declines Rs 130; Silver Tumbles Rs 305
Gold dipped Rs 130 to Rs 46,093 per 10 gram in the national capital on Tuesday following a decline in international precious metal prices, according to HDFC Securities.
In the previous trade, the precious metal had closed at Rs 46,223 per 10 gram.
Silver also declined Rs 305 to Rs 66,040 per kilogram from Rs 66,345 per kilogram in the previous trade.
In the international market, gold was trading lower at USD 1,726 per ounce and silver was flat at USD 24.89 per ounce.
“Gold prices traded lower with spot gold prices at COMEX (New York-based commodities exchange) trading down to $1,726 per ounce on Tuesday,” according to HDFC Securities, Senior Analyst (Commodities), Tapan Patel.