MUMBAI: Markets raised a toast to strong IIP data with Nifty scaling a new high at 10,167 on Friday, while the Sensex closed at a two-month high. As dealers dumped slowdown fears and instead pumped money to trade in truckloads, the rupee stood firm against the US dollar that fuelled the rally, taking investor wealth to Rs 138.19 lakh crore.
The overall investor optimism, led by robust industrial production numbers, steady headline inflation data, reasonable Q2 earnings and anticipated rise in consumer spend amid the festive cheer, rubbed off on broader markets as well, in the process lifting BSE small-cap and mid-cap indices.
The 50-share NSE index sprinted to 10,167.45, up 0.70 per cent, after scaling a new intra-day high of 10,191.90. It surpassed its previous record closing of 10,153.19 hit on September 18. The 30-share BSE Sensex opened positive and settled the session higher by 250.47 points, or 0.78 per cent, at 32,432.69 - its biggest closing in three months. The gauge shot up 348 points on Thursday.
“There are reasonable expectations leading into Q2FY18 results, which are likely to be a mixed bag and the market seems to be factoring this in the latest Fed minutes reveal that limited rate hikes would be led by an improving growth outlook,” said Kunj Bansal, executive director & CIO - equity, Centrum Wealth Management.
For the second straight week, both indices rose, with the Sensex adding 618.47 points, or 1.94 per cent - the biggest such weekly jump since July 14 when it read 660.12 points, or 2.10 per cent - and the NSE Nifty soared 187.75 points or 1.88 per cent.
“Better IIP figures have given reasons for investors to resume buying, pushing behind fears of soft corporate numbers. IT numbers have also worked to this end, pushing indices to newer heights, adding to the crescendo of positive vibes ahead of the festive season,” said Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
Bharti Airtel was the lodestar surging 7.89 per cent to Rs 431.60, thanks to its merger deal with Tata Teleservices for a song. IT bellwether TCS firmed up 0.32 per cent to Rs 2,556.75 even as the company’s net profit fell 2.1 per cent in the September quarter.
Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Coal India, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank had a field day, surging by up to 2.86 per cent. The BSE telecom index saw high buying, climbing 5.27 per cent, followed by banking, technology and metal indices. Domestic institutional investors remained net buyers, picking up shares worth Rs 872.54 crore on Thursday. However, foreign portfolio investors gave up shares net Rs 668.13 crore, showed provisional data.
Stocks that rallied on Friday
Tata Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Coal India, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank had a field day, surging by up to 2.86%. Airtel closed 7.89% higher at H431.60, buoyed by its merger deal with Tata Teleservices