Reliance Industries, HDFC, TCS and State Bank of India were the top contributors to the gains in Sensex Domestic stock markets recovered early losses to register sharp gains on Friday afternoon, rebounding from near six-month lows, as buying emerged in metal and energy stocks while IT stocks strengthened further.
The S-P BSE Sensex, which hit a five-and-a-half-month low of 36,102.35 in morning, surged 704.99 points from that level to 36,807.34.
The broader NSE Nifty benchmark jumped 225.4 points from a six-month low of 10,637.15 to touch 10,862.55.
Buying in auto, IT, metal and energy shares pushed the markets higher in afternoon deals.
Here are 10 things to know:At 1:49 pm, theSensex traded 312.93 points - or 0.86 per cent - higher at 36,785.86 while the Nifty was up 110.95 points - or 1.03 per cent - at 10,852.30.Top percentage gainers on the 50-scrip index at the time were Yes Bank, Vedanta, Zee Entertainment, Indiabulls Housing Finance, Grasim and ONGC, trading between 1.13 per cent and 2.30 per cent higher.Reliance Industries, HDFC, TCS and State Bank of India were top movers in the Sensex.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will hold a press briefing on Friday evening, a government spokesman said, amid expectations that the government would announce steps to revive economic growth.Analysts say hopes of steps to boost investor sentiment may drive the markets in the near term.Recovery in the markets has nothing to do with fundamentals.
The fundamentals have not changed overnight.
Hopes of policy announcements are causing a breather effect, Deven Choksey of KRChoksey Investment Managers told TheIndianSubcontinent.Market breadth turned positive with1,208 stocks trading higher and 1,077 moving lower on the BSE.
On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), 964 stocks advanced while 789 declined.The Nifty IT index jumped 1.47 per cent at one point, as the rupee slid below the 72 mark against the dollar.
Weakness in the rupee boosts the profitability for Indian IT companies which earn a majority of revenues from US and European markets.Tone of the Finance Minister will be extremely important.
If the tone is weak, nothing will happen on Monday, Mr Choksey said.The Sensex and Nifty had ended1.6 per cent lower each on Thursday to settle at their lowest levels in at least five months.Get Breaking news, live coverage, and Latest News from India and around the world on TheIndianSubcontinent.com.
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