FINAL TRADE: Sensex leaps 406 pts, Nifty near 19,550 as D-Street halts 2-day losing streak

Stock markets today: Domestic equity benchmarks rose on Thursday, halting a two-day losing streak, led by IT and financial shares amid easing crude oil prices as well as US bond yields. The S&P BSE Sensex ended 405.53 points or 0.62 per cent higher at 65,631.57, and the NSE Nifty settled at 19,545.75, up 109.65 points or 0.56 per cent for the day. The focus shifted to the outcome of RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das-led Monetary Policy Committee's three-day, bi-monthly deliberations, due on Friday.   

As many as 35 stocks in the 50-scrip Nifty basket finished the day stronger, with Bajaj Auto, Larsen & Toubro, Mahindra & Mahindra, Titan, and TCS being the top gainers, rising between 1.48 per cent and 2.15 per cent. On the other hand, PowerGrid, Hindalco, NTPC, Cipla, and Nestle India, declining between 0.38 per cent and 1.21 per cent, were the top laggards. 

L&T, ICICI Bank, Infosys, and TCS were the top contributors to the rise in the 30-scrip index.

The high-beta Nifty Bank index—whose 12 constituents include HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and SBI—ended 0.57 per cent weaker at 44,213.35 ahead of the RBI policy announcements. Most economists expect the RBI to leave the repo rate—or the key interest rate at which it lends money to commercial banks—unchanged at 6.5 per cent on Friday. 

Among broader indices, the Nifty Mid Cap 100 finished flat whereas the Small Cap 100 closed over half a per cent higher.

Overall market breadth favoured the bulls, with an advance-decline ratio of 8:5, as 2,278 stocks rose and 1,384 fell for the day on BSE. 

Investors also awaited the onset of the corporate earnings season due next week for domestic cues.  

BUZZING STOCKS 

Here are some of the stocks that buzzed in trade on October 5: 

• Zomato shares climbed up more than four per cent on expectations of consumption stocks to perform well during the Cricket World Cup
• Edelweiss Financial shares soared 12 per cent after the financial services firm said it was set to raise Rs 200 crore through NCDs
• Sobha shares soared more than six per cent ahead of the release of the RBI policy statement 
• Marico shares fell more than four per cent after the company released its Q2 business update

TECHNICAL VIEW 

"The recent correction has halted around the 20-week moving average (19,320) and now we expect a relief rally over the next few trading sessions. On the upside, we expect the pullback till 19,780-19,800 levels, which coincides with the 50 per cent Fibonacci retracement level and the 20-day moving average (20 DMA). In terms of levels, 19,460-19,480 is the crucial support zone while the 19,670-19,700 band will act as an immediate hurdle zone," said Jatin Gedia, Technical Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Gedia expects the Nifty Bank to stage a pullback move till 44,800-45,000 in the short term.

GLOBAL MARKETS

European shares began the day on a positive note, tracking positive moves across Asia where equities rebounded from 11-month lows, after US Treasury yields retreated from their highest levels in 16 years. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index was up 0.35 per cent at the last count. 

France's CAC 40 and Germany's DAX were down 0.3 per cent and 0.2 per cent, respectively, while the UK's FTSE 100 gauge was flat. 

However, Wall Street was on track for a sluggish start later in the day, with the futures contracts of Dow Jones and S&P 500 trading 0.1 per cent and 0.2 per cent lower, respectively, while Nasdaq Composite futures were flat. 

Concerns over global demand led to a five per cent fall in benchmark crude oil prices, helping importers like India, which meets more than four-fifths of its oil requirement through imports.

With inputs from agencies 

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