Post Session: Quick Review

Indian equity markets held their healthy gains till end of the session and settled with gains of over half a percent on account of buying in front line counters. Nifty closed near record high levels. Traders reacted to US after Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech that signaled the central bank is prepared to begin cutting interest rates at its next monetary policy meeting in September. Sector wise, IT, Metal and Oil & Gas sector’s stocks witnessed buying interest. As for broader indices, the BSE Mid cap index and Small cap index ended in green.

Markets made positive start and extended their gains as traders took support after the latest data from the Reserve Bank of India showed that India’s foreign exchange reserves rose by $4.54 billion to $674.66 billion in the week ended August 16. The total reserves increased on the back of a rise in foreign currency assets, which grew by $3.6 billion during the week. In the week ended August 9, the reserves had decreased by $4.8 billion to $670.119 billion after hitting an all-time high of $674.91 billion in the week ended August 2. Traders overlooked private report that India's economic growth likely moderated and grew at its slowest pace in a year in the April-June quarter due to lower government spending amid a national election that concluded in June. In the April-June quarter, gross domestic product (GDP) was forecast to have grown an annual 6.9%, down from 7.8% in the preceding quarter. Markets continued to trade higher in afternoon session. Sentiments remained upbeat as Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal said that an MSME should not be looked upon as merely a small enterprise, its thinking should not be small or negative since MSMEs are a big force, they are successful, they are the strength of the nation, are giving employment to millions of countrymen and contribute to nation building. In late afternoon session, indices continued their gaining momentum amid value buying by investors. Finally, Nifty and Sensex settled above the psychological 25,000 and 81,600 levels, respectively.

On the global front, European markets ended mostly in red as investors digested weak business sentiment data and looked ahead to the release of a slew of regional data due later in the week. Asian markets ended mostly in green after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell indicated the time has come for the policy to adjust. Back home, Crisil Ratings in its latest report has said that India's urea industry, which contributes to a significant portion of chemical fertiliser demand, has taken strong strides towards self-sufficiency.

The BSE Sensex ended at 81,698.11, up by 611.90 points or 0.75% after trading in a range of 81,278.44 and 81,824.27. There were 21 stocks advancing against 8 stocks declining on the index, while 1 stock remained unchanged. (Provisional)

The broader indices ended in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.66%, while Small cap index was up by 0.20%. (Provisional)

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Metal up by 2.03%, Realty up by 1.69%, Consumer Durables up by 1.43%, IT up by 1.37% and Oil & Gas was up by 1.17%, while Telecom down by 0.03% was the only losing indices on BSE. (Provisional)

The top gainers on the Sensex were HCL Tech. up by 3.47%, NTPC up by 3.22%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.84%, Tech Mahindra up by 2.50% and JSW Steel up by 2.38%. On the flip side, Adani Ports &Special down by 0.54%, Maruti Suzuki down by 0.45%, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 0.44%, Nestle down by 0.42% and Sun Pharma down by 0.19% were the top losers. (Provisional)

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has said India and the US look forward to working together and benefiting from each other's experiences. Singh is in the US on a four-day official visit to further boost the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the US and India. Singh met the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin. 

Austin praised the momentum behind the US-India relationship. He noted the countries' increased cooperation on a range of defence issues, including efforts to strengthen critical supply chains and interoperability between their militaries. Austin said ‘We share a vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific, and our defence cooperation continues to grow stronger and stronger’. He added ‘We're expanding our defence industrial ties and working to co-produce more capabilities and strengthen supply chain resilience’. He said that the countries have increased operational cooperation across all domains and highlighted India's participation in this summer's Rim of the Pacific, a large-scale exercise led by the US Navy in Hawaii that brought together 29 partner nations. 

He also said the Indian navy remains an important security provider in the Indian Ocean. He said ‘Indian sailors have helped mariners in distress and defended global commerce. So, we are committed to deepening naval cooperation, to doing more together with unmanned technology, and to strengthening undersea domain awareness’. Rajnath Singh said the growing cooperation covers ‘all areas of human endeavour.’ He noted the robust people-to-people ties, shared democratic values, and the convergence of interests between the US and India on a range of issues.

The CNX Nifty ended at 25,010.60, up by 187.45 points or 0.76% after trading in a range of 24,874.70 and 25,043.80. There were 32 stocks advancing against 18 stocks declining on the index. (Provisional)

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindalco up by 3.90%, HCL Tech up by 3.49%, NTPC up by 3.21%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.82% and ONGC up by 2.81%. On the flip side, Apollo Hospital down by 1.18%, Hero MotoCorp down by 0.76%, Adani Ports down by 0.59%, Maruti Suzuki down by 0.48% and Eicher Motors down by 0.47% were the top losers. (Provisional)

European markets were trading mostly in red; France’s CAC rose 2.65 points or 0.03% to 7,579.69 and Germany’s DAX was down by 57.9 points or 0.31% to 18,575.20.

Asian markets ended mostly higher on Monday, tracking Wall Street’s gains last Friday and the 10-year Treasury yield softened after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium indicated the time has come for policy to adjust. However, Japanese shares declined as the yen grew stronger against the US dollar after hawkish remarks from the Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda.