Financial stocks give Sensex 424-point lift after RBI announcements

NEW DELHI: Benchmark indices registered sharp gains on Wednesday amid strong buying interest in banking and financial stocks after RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das allowed the restructuring of retail and MSME loans. Positive global cues also boosted the market sentiment.

Pharma names were in demand while the broader market witnessed keen interest in shipping stocks as well as select PSU stocks. Index rebalancing by MSCI also led to some buying in certain stocks.

The 30-share pack Sensex rose 424.04 points or 0.88 per cent to close at 48,677.55. Its broader peer NSE Nifty advanced 121.35 points or 0.84 per cent to settle at 14,617.85.


“While reassuring RBI’s policy aid, the Governor announced an array of support measures to the Covid-hit sectors viz., restructuring schemes and liquidity measures. India’s Service PMI index reported a marginal decline in April to 54.0 from 54.6 in March 2021 owing to a slowdown in external demand and escalation of the pandemic, but is expected to improve on a QoQ basis from Q2FY21 onwards," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Market at a glance:

• Adani Ports declines 4% after Q4 earnings; margins misses Street estimates
• Sun Pharma leads gainers on Nifty, up 6%
• Hikal jumps 10% after co signs multi-year deal to supply API
• Tata Chemicals falls 1% after Q4 numbers disappoint
• Fear gauge VIX plunges 5%

Among the blue chip stocks, Sun Pharma was the top gainer, rising 5.84 per cent. UPL, Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, Titan Company and Dr Reddy’s Labs were other gainers.

Adani Ports was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling 3.82 per cent. Bajaj Finance, SBi Life Insurance, Asian Paints, HUL, Tech Mahindra, L&T and Nestle India were other scrips that ended in the red.

Broader market indices ended higher as well, outperforming their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap rose 0.41 per cent and Nifty Midcap advanced 1 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, added 0.89 per cent.

Bharat Heavy Electronics, PI Industries, JSW Energy, Sun Pharma Advanced Research, EID Parry and Balrampur Chini Mills were top gainers from mid- and small-cap indices, climbing in the range of 6-10 per cent.

Carborundum Universal, Future Retail, Sterlite Technology, Godrej Properties, Alembic Pharmaceuticals and Aditya Birla Fashion Retail were major losers from the broader market space, falling in the range of 2-6 per cent.

Barring Nifty Realty that fell 1 per cent, all sectoral indices on NSE ended in the green. Nifty Pharma was the top gainer, rising 4.12 per cent. Nifty Bank, Nifty Financial Service and Nifty IT were among other major gainers.

There’s no shortage of trading opportunities on the stock-specific front. So, participants should align their positions accordingly while keeping a check on leveraged trades.

-Ajit Mishra, Religare Broking

Market breadth was in favour of gainers as 1,834 stocks ended in the green while 1,110 counters settled with cuts. As many as 209 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the small-cap space. Meanwhile, 37 scrips hit 52-week lows, mostly from the micro-cap space. About 332 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 184 lower circuit limits.

European markets were trading mixed at the last count. London-based FTSE was up 1.15 per cent while Paris and Frankfurt rose 0.91 per cent and 1.33 per cent, respectively. In Asia, South Korea and Indonesia gained while other markets closed in the red.