Sensex rises 46 points, clocks best weekly gains in 2-months

Mumbai: The benchmark Sensex today rose over 46 points to end at 28,121.89 on continued buying in blue-chip shares and wrapped up its best weekly gain in over two months. [caption id=“attachment_2010825” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption]Similarly, the NSE Nifty index inched up by 19.65 points, or 0.23 percent, to close at 8,513.80. Markets were in a positive mood after Thursday’s massive rally as RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan sprang a surprise by cutting interest rates by 0.25 percent to boost growth. The 30-share Sensex, after opening lower on profit booking in recent gainers, dipped below 28,000-mark to touch a low of 27,945.31. However, it gained ground and settled at 28,121.89, a rise of 46.34 points or 0.17 percent. For the week, the BSE index gained 663 points. This is its best weekly rise in absolute terms since 31 October. Besides the rate cut, macroeconomic data also supported buying as government data showed that India’s trade deficit declined to 10-month low in December. “Markets remained in a very narrow range but in bullish mode to adjust for the effect of a interest rate cut on the balance sheets of India Inc,” said Bonanza Portfolio, Associate Fund Manager, Hiren Dhakan. However, tepid earnings of some firms affected trading. TCS shares fell after the company posted a marginal 0.1 percent slide in its net profits in December quarter. Heavyweight RIL saw some demand ahead of earnings. Of 30 Sensex constituents, 18 shares ended with gains led by Sun Pharma, Coal India, Hindustan Unilever, M&M, BHEL, Sesa Sterlite, Cipla, L&T, Dr Reddys, Tata Power and HDFC Bank. Sectorwise, the BSE Consumer Durables index gained the most by rising 1.98 percent, followed by Healthcare index 1.41 percent, Power index 1.36 percent and Capital Goods index 1.23 percent, among others. The BSE Mid-cap Index also rose by 0.32 percent while the Small-cap index fell 0.04 percent. Globally, a weak closing at other Asian bourses and a lower opening at European markets following a surprise move by the Swiss central bank to strengthen its currency were the major international cues today. Foreigners bought shares worth net Rs 1,738.24 crore yesterday as per provisional data. PTI