Sensex soars 276 points to close above 35,000-mark even as RBI hikes repo rate; Nifty up 91 points

Mumbai: The BSE Sensex surged almost 276 points to end above the key 35,000-mark on Wednesday even as the RBI hiked the policy rate by 0.25 percent on inflation concerns. However, the RBI retained the GDP growth forecast for 2018-19 at 7.4 percent on hopes of further boost to investments and higher consumption. The central bank hiked the benchmark lending rate for the first time in four-and-half-years on inflation concerns arising from a surge in international oil prices. [caption id=“attachment_4382183” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] The repo rate now stands at 6.25 percent. The BSE Sensex, which opened strong at 34,932.49, fell after RBI’s policy announcement but soon recovered to touch the day’s high of 35,230.54. It finally ended at 35,178.88, up 275.67 points, or 0.79 percent. The gauge had lost 419.17 points in the previous three sessions. On similar lines, the NSE Nifty, after shuttling between 10,698.35 and 10,587.50, finished the session 91.50 points, or 0.86 percent higher at 10,684.65. Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 474.33 crore, while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 157.51 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.