Sensex Rebounds 362 Points, Snaps Four-Day Losing Streak On Metal, Oil Rally

Indian equity markets staged a strong recovery on Friday, with the Sensex rising 362 points to snap a four-session losing streak, as investors stepped up buying in metal, banking and oil and gas stocks amid positive global cues.

The 30-share BSE Sensex gained 362.57 points, or 0.48 per cent, to close at 76,515.43. The benchmark had rallied as much as 730.28 points, or 0.95 per cent, during the session to touch an intraday high of 76,883.14.

The broader Nifty gained 24.25 points, or 0.10 per cent, to settle at 23,897.70. It crossed the 24,000 mark during the day, reaching 24,005.75, before giving up most of its gains during the newly introduced Closing Auction Session.

Among Sensex constituents, Tata Steel, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance, Trent, Adani Ports, HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the major gainers. UltraTech Cement, Titan, Mahindra & Mahindra and Hindustan Unilever also ended higher.

Bharti Airtel, HCL Technologies, Eternal, Asian Paints, TCS, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank, Bharat Electronics and Maruti Suzuki were among the stocks that declined.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, said the market witnessed a relief rally as concerns about an imminent US Federal Reserve rate hike eased. However, profit booking at higher levels and continuing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East limited gains.

Broader markets remained firm, with small-cap indices touching fresh lifetime intraday highs, supported by strong earnings momentum, resilient economic growth and robust domestic demand.

Global markets provided additional support. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 1.74 per cent, South Korea’s KOSPI gained 1.64 per cent and Japan’s Nikkei climbed 1.28 per cent, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite fell 0.30 per cent.

Brent crude slipped 0.40 per cent to USD 95.14 a barrel.

Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 2,345.87 crore on Thursday, while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 4,977.46 crore.

The rebound followed Thursday’s 417-point Sensex decline, which had extended the benchmark’s losing streak to four sessions