Market Wrap, Oct 19: Here's all that happened in the markets today

The domestic stock market ended around one per cent higher on Monday on the back of gains in financial and FMCG stocks. Positive global cues also boosted investor sentiment.

Among headline indices, the S&P BSE Sensex settled 449 points, or 1 per cent higher at 40,432 levels and the Nifty50 index topped the 11,850-mark to settle at 11,873, up 111 points, or 0.94 per cent. ICICI Bank (up 5 per cent) ended as the biggest gainer on Sensex while Bajaj Auto (down nearly 2 per cent) was the biggest loser.

The volatility index, India VIX, gained nearly a per cent to 21.82 levels.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index ended at 14,706, up 0.58 per cent while the S&P BSE SmallCap index ended at 14,851, up 0.43 per cent.

Among sectoral indices on the NSE, Nifty PSU Bank index gained the most - up over 4 per cent to 1,323 levels. Nifty Pharma, on the other hand, declined 1.7 per cent.

Now, let's focus on the buzzing stocks of the day.

Shares of Amber Enterprises India ended nearly 13 per cent higher at Rs 2,459 on the BSE fter the government banned the import of air conditioners with refrigerants. The consumer electronics company's stock was trading at its fresh record high level.

Bank stocks were in focus at the bourses on Monday and rallied by up to 6 per cent, after two private sector banks - HDFC Bank and Federal Bank - reported a healthy operational performance for July-September 2020 quarter of the current fiscal (Q2FY21).

Shares of Bharti Airtel were under pressure on Monday, hitting a seven-month low of Rs 394 on the BSE. The stock ended at Rs 397 apiece on the BSE, down 1 per cent.

Now, a look at the global markets.

European stocks rallied on Monday as rising hopes of a coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year and a US fiscal package before elections offset concern over record daily infections in the region.

Wall Street futures rose 0.9 per cent on the 33rd anniversary of the 1987 "Black Monday" crash, when the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 22.6 per cent in one day, equivalent to a drop of about 6,500 points in the index today.

In commodities, oil prices fell as concerns over surging coronavirus cases globally dampened the prospects for demand recovery while China’s third-quarter economic growth was weaker than expected.