Benchmarks soar for 2nd day in row

Mumbai, PTI: Stocks defied gravity for the second straight session on Friday as recently-mauled energy and metal counters attracted heavy buying interest.

A recovering rupee, encouraging earnings and unabated buying by domestic institutional investors added to the momentum, brokers said.

The BSE Sensex surged over 261 points to finish at 34,924.87, while the broader NSE Nifty jumped 91.30 points to 10,605.15.

On the global front, investors were cautious after US President Donald Trump cancelled a planned meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and threatened to impose tariffs on auto imports.

The 30-share BSE Sensex opened on a strong footing at 34,753.47 and maintained its upward trend to hit the day’s high of 35,017.93. It finally ended at 34,924.87, up 261.76 points, or 0.76%.

The index had rallied 318.20 points in the previous session.

The Nifty finished the day at 10,605.15, showing a hefty gain of 91.30 points, or 0.87%, after shuttling between 10,628.05 and 10,524.

On a weekly basis, the Sensex scored a moderate gain of 76.57 points, or 0.22 per cent while the Nifty rose 8.75 points, or 0.08%.

Meanwhile, Indian markets have witnessed a significant rise during the first four years of the Narendra Modi government.

Since May 26, 2014, the day Modi was sworn in as the Prime Minister, the benchmark Sensex has risen by 10,207.99 points or 41.30%, while the NSE Nifty spurted 3,246.10 points or 44.11%. The Sensex hit a lifetime high of 36,443.98 on January 29, 2018.

“Some respite was seen in INR and oil prices which helped the market to recoup its losses this week,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.