Markets Remain Close After Posting Biggest Monthly Gains, Sensex Jumped 1,000 Points On Back On Promising Covid-19 Drug Trial

The gain is estimated to be the biggest monthly jump since 10 years, after the markets bounced back from a near 23 per cent slump in March due to the outbreak of Covid-19 that derailed economies globally.

REPRESENTATIONAL PIC/AFP.

New Delhi, May 1: The currency, debt and equity markets remain closed on Friday, May 1 on the occasion of Labour Day, but after it posted the biggest monthly gains with the Sensex soaring 1,000 points to settle at 33,717 on Thursday. The markets rallied on the back of results from a Covid-19 treatment trial in the US that lifted investor sentiment. The markets witnessed buying across the board with stocks such as Tata Motors, Vedanta, and Hindalco leading the pack. Among the BSE Sensex 30 index stocks, ONGC rallied 13 per cent, HCL Tech 10 per cent, Hero MotoCorp 10 per cent, TCS 6 per cent, Infosys 6 per cent and Tata Steel 6 per cent. Financial markets will resume trading on Monday, May 4. The NSE Nifty 50 index closed 3.21 per cent higher at 9,859.9 on Thursday, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex ended up 3.05 per cent at 33,717.62. Markets extended gains to the fourth day as sentiment were buoyed on promising early results from a COVID-19 drug trial. According to the analysis in Livemint, the indexes gained 14 per cent or 4,200 points higher in April. The gain is estimated to be the biggest monthly rally since May 2009 after the markets bounced back from a near 23 per cent decline in March due to the outbreak of Covid-19 that has hit the economies globally. The 10-year benchmark bond yield ended at 6.35 per cent, while the rupee settled at 75.1 to the dollar. Meanwhile, the US stocks slipped on Thursday as investors were taken aback by dismal economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 288.14 points, or 1.17 per cent, to 24,345.72. The S&P 500 was down 27.08 points, or 0.92 per cent, to 2,912.43. The Nasdaq Composite Index decreased 25.16 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 8,889.55, Xinhua reported. Of the stocks, 11 primary S&P 500 sectors declined, with materials and financials sliding 2.96 per cent and 2.68 per cent, respectively in the category of laggards. However, the major averages posted solid monthly gains even as the stocks declined. The Dow rallied 11.1 per cent in April, the S&P 500 surged 12.7 percent, and the Nasdaq climbed 15.5 per cent for the month. US initial jobless claims, a rough way to measure layoffs, registered 3.839 million in the week ending April 25, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Thursday. This took the total count of claimants in the past six weeks to about 30 million amid the pandemic. The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided to maintain its benchmark interest rate at the record-low level of near zero and pledged to continue taking aggressive action to support the economy. (With inputs from agencies)