The domestic equity benchmarks hit fresh intraday high in afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 17,550 level. European markets edged higher while Asian stocks traded mostly in the green.
At 13:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 828.17 points or 1.41% to 59,737.52. The Nifty 50 index added 249.60 points or 1.44% to 17,571.50.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.73% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index advanced 0.86%.
Market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,181 shares rose and 1,233 shares fell. A total of 124 shares were unchanged.
Economy:
The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Services PMI Business Activity Index came in at 59.4 in February as against 57.2 in January, attaining its highest level in 12 years and indicating a sharp expansion in output. Where growth was reported, survey participants mentioned favourable demand conditions and new business gains.
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Stocks in Spotlight:
Adani Ports & SEZ jumped 8.68%. The company handled 26.5 mmt cargo in February, which is 10% higher than the previous year period and during April-February, the cargo volumes stood at 307 mmt, up 8.5% YoY.
MOIL rose 2.42% after the company recorded manganese (Mn) ore production of 1.31 lakh tonnes in February 2023, thereby registering a growth of 10% over the same period last year. Sales at 1.32 lakh tonnes of manganese ore during February 2023, was higher by 19% vis-vis February 2022.
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL) was up 0.05%. The company issued 1,65,000 unsecured, redeemable, non-convertible, non-cumulative, taxable debentures having face value of Rs 1 lakh each, aggregating to Rs 1,650 crore.
Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services rose 1.01%. The company said that in February 2023, the total disbursement of approximately Rs 4,185 crore, delivering 53% growth over February 2022. Consequently, the loan book grew further by 1.5% over January 2023.
Global markets:
Markets in Europe advanced across the board while their Asian peers mostly advanced on Friday, following Wall Street's gains overnight after Atlanta Fed president Raphael Bostic said he's "firmly in favor of sticking with quarter-point hikes.
China's services sector saw a jump in activity, according to the Caixin/S&P Global services purchasing manager's index, with a reading of 55 in February from 52.9 in January.
The headline S&P Global Singapore purchasing manager's index fell to 49.6 in February.
Japan's services purchasing managers index came in at 54, higher than the 52.3 in January. A reading above 50 signals expansion, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction for the sector.
Tokyo's consumer price index rose by 3.3% in February, a lower print than January's 4.3% government data showed. Overall, CPI for the capital city reached 3.4%, a cooler print from the 4.4% seen last month, while prices excluding food and energy for Tokyo rose by 1.8%, also a slower pace than 1.7% from January.
US stocks were initially under pressure as the trading day started, but rallied in the afternoon after Bostic's remarks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average led gains among the major U.S. indexes, rising 1.05%, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed 0.76% and 0.73% higher.
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