Sensex, Nifty rise on buying in banking stocks

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty settled higher on Thursday, powered by a rally in banking and power stocks amid a largely firm trend in global markets.

The stock markets mostly traded range-bound in the absence of any major trigger and persistent foreign capital outflows, traders said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 144.31 points, or 0.18 per cent, to settle at 81,611.41.

During the day, it soared 535.74 points, or 0.65 per cent, to hit an intra-day high of 82,002.84.

The NSE Nifty climbed 16.50 points, or 0.07 per cent, to close at 24,998.45.

In the intra-day trade, it rose 152.1 points, or 0.60 per cent, to hit a high of 25,134.05.

"The market was trading lacklustre in the absence of any major trigger and continued selling by FIIs.

"Overall, we expect the market to consolidate in a range with stock-specific action," Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd, said.

From the 30 Sensex companies, Kotak Mahindra Bank, JSW Steel, HDFC Bank, Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, Maruti Suzuki India, NTPC, Axis Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the gainers.

In contrast, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Infosys, Titan, Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro and Tata Consultancy Services were among the laggards.

"The market traded on a range-bound trend with a negative bias ahead of the start of Q2 result.

"The Asian market started well but could not hold on to the gains as European markets waved on a negative trend in anticipation of the key US inflation data, global bond yields are rising," Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said.

Domestic broader market momentum was mixed with caution as the initial expectation of Q2FY25 results is subdued due to a subpar momentum in the global and rural demand, Nair added.

Shares of Tata Group companies on Thursday rose to 15 per cent, with Tata Investment Corporation, Tata Chemicals, and Tata Teleservices among the major gainers.

Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata, who played a key role in transforming the group into a global conglomerate, passed away late on Wednesday. He was 86.

Meanwhile, TCS reported a 4.99 per cent increase in its September quarter net profit at Rs 11,909 crore.

In the broader market, while the BSE midcap gauge slipped 0.36 per cent, smallcap index rose 0.43 per cent.

Sector-wise, Bankex rose by 1.11 per cent, power (0.75 per cent), Utilities (0.70 per cent), Industrials and financial services went up 0.65 per cent each and Telecommunication (0.41 per cent).

On the other hand, healthcare declined 1.39 per cent, IT fell 1.07 per cent, Teck slipped 0.87 per cent, Realty and FMCG decreased 0.42 per cent each, and Consumer Durables went down by 0.42 per cent.

"Asian equities mostly rose on Thursday after US stocks set a fresh high. European shares slipped on Thursday, with technology and mining stocks leading losses, ahead of US inflation data that could show whether the Federal Reserve will opt for a slower pace of interest-rate cuts," Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities, said.

In Asian markets, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Seoul were closed higher.

Global oil benchmark Brent Crude climbed 1.37 per cent to $77.63 a barrel in futures trade.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,562.71 crore on Wednesday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought equities worth Rs 3,508.61 crore, according to exchange data.

"Indian markets opened higher on Thursday, tracking gains in the US stock market, as the Federal Reserve's meeting fuelled optimism about potential rate cuts in the US, which could enhance liquidity in emerging markets," Ameya Ranadive Chartered Market Technician, CFTe, Senior Technical Analyst, StoxBox, said.

However, it could not sustain the day's peak and faced slight selling pressure and closed with little gains, Ranadive added.