After brief profit selling in afternoon trade, upward momentum resumed as key benchmark indices hit fresh intraday high in mid-afternoon trade. At 14:19 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 301.67 points or 0.92% at 33,250.88. The Nifty 50 index was up 95.30 points or 0.94% at 10,262.
The buying momentum was backed by hopes that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would win critical state elections in Gujarat beginning this weekend. The election in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state is a key test for the BJP, ahead of general elections in 2019. The Gujarat Assembly Elections 2017 will take place in two phases on 9 December 2017 and 14 December 2017. Counting of votes will take place on 18 December 2017.
Positive global stocks also boosted sentiments. The Sensex opened above the psychologically important 33,000 mark and extended gains as the session progressed. The Sensex and the Nifty, both, hit 1-week highs in mid-afternoon trade.
The Sensex rose 336.47 points, or 1.02% at the day's high of 33,285.68 in mid-afternoon trade, its highest intraday level since 1 December 2017. The index rose 84.99 points, or 0.26% at the day's low of 33,034.20 at the onset of trading session. The Nifty rose 99.90 points, or 0.98% at the day's high of 10,266.60 in mid-afternoon trade, its highest intraday level since 1 December 2017. The index rose 28.55 points, or 0.28% at the day's low of 10,195.25 at the onset of trading session.
Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.87%, underperforming the Sensex. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 1.17%, outperforming the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1,643 shares rose and 964 shares fell. A total of 146 shares were unchanged.
Most capital goods shares rose. Thermax (up 3.98%), Havells India (up 1.77%), Siemens (up 1.76%), Bharat Heavy Electricals (up 1.42%), Bharat Electronics (up 1.18%), BEML (up 1.16%), Suzlon Energy (up 1.09%), Lakshmi Machine Works (up 0.96%), Jindal Saw (up 0.48%), Crompton Greaves (up 0.30%), Reliance Defence and Engineering (up 0.27%), Punj Lloyd (up 0.24%), ABB India (up 0.18%) and SKF India (up 0.09%), edged higher. AIA Engineering (down 0.36%), GE Power India (down 0.48%), GE T&D India (down 0.51%) and Praj Industries (down 1.35%), edged lower.
Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) was up 0.38% to Rs 1,223.80.
Shares of public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs) were in demand. HPCL (up 2.73%), Indian Oil Corporation (up 2.72%) and BPCL (up 2.38%), edged higher.
Tata Motors gained 2.72% after the company said that the Tata Motors Group global wholesales, including Jaguar Land Rover, rose 22% at 1,12,473 units in November 2017 over November 2016. Global wholesales of all Tata Motors' commercial vehicles and Tata Daewoo range jumped 51% at 40,845 units in November 2017 over November 2016. Global wholesales of all passenger vehicles grew 10% at 71,628 units in November 2017 over November 2016. The announcement was made during market hours today, 8 December 2017.
Thomas Cook India gained 1.64% after the company announced that it has opened two foreign exchange outlets at Bhubaneswar Airport in its attempt to target the growth potential of Odisha market. Thomas Cook (India) has identified Odisha as a significant growth market for its foreign exchange business and to leverage this opportunity, the company has opened 2 counters at Biju Patnaik International Airport, Bhubaneswar. Industry data highlights that Bhubaneswar airport, the sole international airport in Odisha State, has delivered a strong compounded average growth rate (CAGR) of 22% in passenger traffic over the last two years and with 2.4 million passengers being handled in FY 2016-17, is one of the fastest growing airports in India. The announcement was made during market hours today, 8 December 2017.
Overseas, European markets opened higher as investors reacted to the latest news surrounding Brexit negotiations.
UK and European negotiators finally agreed on three key issues that were blocking Brexit talks, paving the way for the next phase of discussion between the two sides. After six months of intense talks, a settlement has been reached on how much the U.K. will pay before it leaves the Union, on citizens' rights and on the Irish border. Negotiators are now set to move to phase two of Brexit discussing trade arrangements.
Asian stocks were trading higher following a broad-based rally in US equities. Japan's economy grew at a much faster pace than initially estimated in the July-September quarter. The nation's gross domestic product grew at an annualized pace of 2.5% from the previous three months, according to government data released Friday.
US stocks closed higher Thursday, with the S&P 500 snapping a four-session losing streak on the back of gains in the technology, industrials and materials sectors. The S&P 500 index rose 0.29%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.29%, to 24,211.48. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index rose 0.54%.
Traders looked ahead to the monthly jobs report due Friday. Initial US jobless claims, a way to measure layoffs, fell by 2,000 to 236,000 in the seven days ended 2 December 2017.
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