FINAL TRADE: Nifty 2 pts shy of 22,200, Sensex ends 305 pts higher as bulls return

Stock market today: Domestic benchmark indexes settled near the day's highs on Tuesday, February 27, thanks to a rebound in IT stocks. IT bellwether Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) gained in trade after UBS upgraded the stock to "buy" from "neutral."

The blue-chip index NSE Nifty50 settled 0.34 per cent, or 76.3 points, higher at 22,198.35, while the BSE Sensex added 0.42 per cent, or 305.09 points, to close at 73,095.22. Nifty Bank closed flat, 0.02 per cent or 11.55 points lower at 46,588.05.

"The domestic market rebounded from yesterday’s loss amidst volatility, despite weak global cues. The hopes for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and the drop in crude oil prices supported the sentiment," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services, said. 

Nifty IT settled 0.72 per cent stronger at 37,870.25.

Tata Motors, TCS, Power Grid, and IndusInd Bank were among the top gainers on the Sensex, while Here MotoCorp, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, and Bajaj Finserv were the top losers.

The broader, more domestically-focussed Nifty MidCap 100 settled 0.12 per cent lower, while Nifty SmallCap 100 closed with gains of 0.28 per cent. 

"However, the mid & small caps underperformed. The market is looking ahead to key economic data, both domestic and global, with US inflation grabbing the most attention, as that will provide fresh signals on interest rate cuts," Nair added.

Investors await key US data, including the US core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, the Federal Reserve's preferred measure of inflation, on Thursday. On that same day, domestic data is expected to show India's growth likely moderated to 6.6 per cent year-on-year in the October-December quarter, as per a Reuters poll. 

Global Markets

European stock indexes rose slightly in early trading on Tuesday as the equity rally slowed and investors weighed up the outlook for central bank rate cuts ahead of key US and European inflation data later in the week.

Global stocks have surged so far this year, aided by investor enthusiasm around artificial intelligence (AI) and expectations that major central banks will cut rates. The MSCI World Equity Index hit fresh all-time highs last week, following chipmaker Nvidia's quarterly report.

(With agency inputs)

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