Share Market Update: On the back of strong gains in metal and financial stocks and positive Q4 numbers posted by several companies, domestic benchmark indices BSE Sensex and Nifty closed on a much higher note on Friday. Sensex rallied 336 points to reclaim the 39,000-level due to late evening surge, capping off a volatile week where investors grappled with flaring oil prices and sudden sell-offs at higher levels. On similar lines, the NSE Nifty climbed 112.85 points, or 0.97 per cent, to 11,754.65.


Trading received a massive boost on Friday after crude oil prices slipped below $75 per barrel mark and blue-chips posted encouraging results. “A strengthening rupee and unabated foreign fund inflows also bolstered sentiment,” a trader told news agency PTI.

After the closing bell, 30-share BSE Sensex, which opened on a firm footing, was propelled by a burst of buying in late-afternoon trade. It finally closed at 39,067.33, up 336.47 points, or 0.87 per cent.

Spurting by 6.67 per cent after the company posted a rise in consolidated income for the March quarter, Tata Steel was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack in Friday’s trading. Even Axis Bank gained 2.61 per cent and reported a net profit of Rs 1,505 crore for the March quarter.

ICICI Bank, TCS, SBI, RIL, Infosys, HDFC twins, Kotak Bank, HUL, NTPC, IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, HCL Tech, Bajaj Finance L&T and ITC were the other gainers, rising up to 3.05 per cent. On the other hand, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Maruti, Bharti Airtel, Coal India, M&M and Vedanta fell up to 2.84 per cent.

Sectorally, BSE metal, banking, oil and gas, IT, energy and tech indices ended in the green, rising up to 1.92 per cent. BSE auto, consumer durables and telecom finished with losses of up to 1.06 per cent.

Meanwhile, broader indices underperformed the benchmarks, with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap shedding up to 0.44 per cent. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, slipped 1.28 per cent to USD 73.41 per barrel. The rupee rebounded 25 paise to 70 against the US dollar intra-day.