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The markets continued their rally for the fourth consecutive week, with the Sensex and Nifty scaling new peaks. Favourable macroeconomic parameters, bolstered by a runaway rally in banking stocks following Kotak Mahindra Bank’s acquisition of ING Vysya Bank, led the Sensex to gain in three out of the five trading sessions in the week.
For the week, the Sensex surged 287.97 points, or 1.02 per cent, to 28,334.63, while the Nifty rallied 87.45 points, or 1.04 per cent, to 8,477.35, on the back of strong momentum in banking and capital goods stocks. The broader indices underperformed the benchmark indices, with the BSE mid-cap index rising 0.4 per cent to 10,195.79 and the BSE small-cap index gaining 0.96 per cent at 11,325.84. A total of 10 of the 13 BSE sectoral indices ended with gains.
The high-beta BSE Bankex closed at 20,683.54, up 564.77 points, or 2.81 per cent, after hitting a fresh high of 20,777.42; the high-weightage BSE capital goods index jumped 349.27 points, or 2.2 per cent, to 16,234.17.
During the week, foreign institutional investors net-bought Rs 272.54 crore in Indian equities, according to provisional stock exchange data.
The benchmark indices began the week with a bang, after data showed that India’s trade deficit narrowed to $13.35 billion in October compared to the previous month. The momentum dropped, as profit-taking in index heavyweights pushed the indices to end marginally lower for two consecutive trading sessions. On Thursday, the markets ended with modest gains. On Friday, the Sensex closed at 28,335, up 267 points, after hitting a record high of 28,360.66 during the day, while the Nifty settled at 8,477, up 75 points, after touching a new peak of 8,489.8.
Meanwhile, Moody’s revised its outlook on India’s corporate sector from ‘negative’ to ‘stable’ on expectations of an economic recovery and enhanced access to global capital markets. The Paris-based OECD estimated India’s economic growth would stand at 6.6 per cent in 2015; it had estimated 5.7 per cent growth in May.For the week, the Sensex surged 287.97 points, or 1.02 per cent, to 28,334.63, while the Nifty rallied 87.45 points, or 1.04 per cent, to 8,477.35, on the back of strong momentum in banking and capital goods stocks. The broader indices underperformed the benchmark indices, with the BSE mid-cap index rising 0.4 per cent to 10,195.79 and the BSE small-cap index gaining 0.96 per cent at 11,325.84. A total of 10 of the 13 BSE sectoral indices ended with gains.
The high-beta BSE Bankex closed at 20,683.54, up 564.77 points, or 2.81 per cent, after hitting a fresh high of 20,777.42; the high-weightage BSE capital goods index jumped 349.27 points, or 2.2 per cent, to 16,234.17.
During the week, foreign institutional investors net-bought Rs 272.54 crore in Indian equities, according to provisional stock exchange data.
The benchmark indices began the week with a bang, after data showed that India’s trade deficit narrowed to $13.35 billion in October compared to the previous month. The momentum dropped, as profit-taking in index heavyweights pushed the indices to end marginally lower for two consecutive trading sessions. On Thursday, the markets ended with modest gains. On Friday, the Sensex closed at 28,335, up 267 points, after hitting a record high of 28,360.66 during the day, while the Nifty settled at 8,477, up 75 points, after touching a new peak of 8,489.8.
On Wednesday, the Securities and Exchange Board of India cleared big-bang market reforms, including a move to replace the two-decade-old insider-trading rules with the new prohibition of insider trading regulations. It also amended delisting regulations.
The coal ministry issued draft guidelines for the reallocation of coal mines whose allocations were cancelled by the Supreme Court earlier this year, marking the duties of the authorities appointed to operate the ordinance issued.
On the global front, data showed Japan had slipped into recession.
Key stocks
The stellar performers of the week included Bharti Airtel (up three per cent at Rs 401), L&T (up three per cent at Rs 1,665) and ITC (up two per cent at Rs 376). Index heavyweight Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) rose three per cent to Rs 997.
RIL’s subsidiary Reliance Jio Infocomm signed syndicated term loan facilities aggregating to $1.5 billion.
Dr Reddy’s Laboratories jumped three per cent to Rs 3,530. The company launched an over-the-counter allergy relief tablet in the US market on Tuesday. Dr Reddy’s abbreviated new drug application was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.
Cipla gained three per cent at Rs 627. The company signed a distribution agreement with Serum Institute of India to enter into the vaccines segment. Banking stocks also rallied. State Bank of India surged nine per cent to Rs 305 on the back of strong second-quarter results. On Thursday, the bank subdivided the face value of its equity shares from Rs 10 to Re 1.
Outlook
The markets are expected to remain volatile in the week ahead, as traders roll over positions in the futures & options segment from the November series to the December one. The November derivatives contracts are set to expire on Thursday. Investors will focus on data on growth in gross domestic product for the September quarter, to be announced by the government on Friday.
The Reserve Bank of India is scheduled to release data on India's current account deficit for the September quarter on Monday.Investors will also watch out for developments relating to the month-long winter session of Parliament starting Monday.
