Sensex Ends 412 Points Higher, Nifty Settles At 17,784 As RBI Keeps Key Rates Unchanged

Midcap and smallcap shares finished on a positive note as Nifty Midcap 100 index jumped 0.98 per cent and smallcap rose 0.39 per cent.

ITC ended as the top gainer (4.7 per cent) on the Sensex index, while Dr Reddy's Labs, M&M, Tata Steel, Titan, RIL, Asian Paints, Nestle India, and IndusInd Bank were the other gainers. Image: Getty

New Delhi: The key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Friday snapped their three-session losing streak and settled in the green after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) decided to keep the interest rates unchanged and maintained an accommodative stance.

The 30-share Sensex platform rose 412 points (0.70 per cent) to close at 59,447, while the broader NSE Nifty moved 145 points (0.82 per cent) higher to settle at 17,784.

Among individual stocks, ITC ended as the top gainer as it advanced 4.7 per cent on the Sensex index. Dr Reddy's Labs, M&M, Tata Steel, Titan, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints, Nestle India, and IndusInd Bank were the other gainers, rising upwards of 1.5 per cent each.

On the flipside, only Tech M, NTPC, Maruti Suzuki, Sun Pharma, and HCL Tech were the laggards, down up to 1.2 per cent. 

Midcap and smallcap shares finished on a positive note as Nifty Midcap 100 index jumped 0.98 per cent and smallcap rose 0.39 per cent.

Sectorally, 14 out of the 15 sector gauges, compiled by NSE, ended in the green. Nifty FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) and Nifty Metal outperformed the index by rising as much as 2.03 per cent and 2.07 per cent, respectively. Meanwhile, the Nifty IT index ended wee bit in the red.

On Thursday, Sensex had slipped 575 points (0.97 per cent) to close at 59,035, while Nifty had moved 168 points (0.94 per cent) lower to settle at 17,640.

Meanwhile, global shares gained on Friday as investors assessed the pace of the Federal Reserve's monetary tightening plans and news from Ukraine. On Wall Street, futures linked to main indices were up 0.2 per cent each. Stocks in the US ended higher in the overnight session.

In Asia, markets in Hong Kong, Seoul, Shanghai, and Tokyo were trading lower in mid-session deals. Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi ended 0.4 per cent and 0.17 per cent higher, respectively, while the pan-European Stoxx 600 index jumped 1.1 per cent.

International oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.34 per cent to $100.24 per barrel.

According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors continued to offload shares worth Rs 5,009.62 crore on Thursday.

"Today's monetary policy is unlikely to impact the market significantly even if there is a surprise rate hike. That would be interpreted by the market positively indicating that the RBI is not behind the curve," V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Financial Services told the PTI.

The real concern for the market, going forward, would be the aggressive rate hikes and quantitative tightening by the Fed expected in the coming 12 months, he said, while adding, "Crude softening to around $100 is positive while FIIs again turning sellers will provide ammunition to the bears.