CHENNAI: Indian equity markets ended Thursday’s session with modest gains, supported by financials and Reliance Industries, while pharma stocks outperformed.
The Nifty 50 closed at 25,120, up 0.28%, and the Sensex settled at 82,146, up 120 points or 0.35%. The BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices ended flat, reflecting a mixed broader market trend.
Pharma stocks saw buying interest after regulatory and product-related developments boosted sentiment.
Dr. Reddy’s gained after receiving a positive regulatory outcome for its Miryalaguda API facility and launching a new authorised generic drug in the U.S.
Cipla also attracted investors on the back of its growing U.S. product pipeline and recent approvals.
The sector also benefited from a defensive bid, as investors looked for safer bets ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole meeting.
Among the Nifty gainers were Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories, Cipla, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, and Reliance Industries. On the losing side, Bajaj Auto, Coal India, Power Grid Corporation, Jio Financial, and Tata Consumer Products weighed on the index.
As far as the sectoral trend is concerned, pharma and realty indices rose about 0.5% each, while auto and FMCG slipped by a similar margin.
While, the other drivers were fnancial stocks and Reliance Industries. These counters provided steady support to the benchmarks, while a marginally stronger rupee around 86.98 per US dollar offered a stable backdrop for foreign flows.