Sensex jumps 965 points even as weak global cues drag down broader market

India’s benchmark equity indices closed higher on Friday even as the broader market remained predominantly negative for most of the session. The Sensex climbed 965 points while the Nifty touched the 24,330 mark, propelled largely by buying in blue-chip Reliance Industries along with bank and IT stocks.

Traders said weak global cues kept pressure on the wider market through the day, but large-cap names bucked the trend. A strengthening rupee against the US dollar further improved sentiment, with the currency gaining 14 paise to settle at 96.3 per dollar.

“There is a shift in market momentum, with strong traction moving towards large-cap stocks, led by the IT and banking sectors,” said Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments. He said the trend was supported by optimism around business updates and Q1 earnings expectations, with domestic institutional investors rotating out of expensive mid- and small-cap stocks into large caps offering better value.

Tech Mahindra was among the standout performers, rising 3.9% after posting a 28.4% year-on-year jump in net profit to Rs 1,465 crore for the June quarter. Kotak Mahindra Bank, TCS, Reliance Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Mahindra & Mahindra, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank and Bajaj Finance also ended in the green.

On the losing side, Sun Pharma, Trent, Bharti Airtel and UltraTech Cement dragged, with the commodities, industrials, telecommunication and metal segments among the weakest performers of the day. Brent crude rose 1.79% to $85.5 a barrel in the same session.

“Indian equity markets ended the week on a strong note, extending their recovery as broad-based buying in heavyweight banking, financial, and IT stocks helped benchmark indices outperform weak global cues,” said Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth-tech firm.

Wikimedia Commons/by Pradeep717