Indian equities had their best weekly run in years on Friday as investors shrugged off negative global sentiments to chase attractive stocks hammered by a recent correction.
The NSE Nifty 50 closed 159.75 points or 0.69% higher at 23,350.40, while the BSE Sensex ended 557.45 points or 0.73% up at 76,905.51. During the day, the Nifty jumped to 23,402.70, while the Sensex rose to 77,041.94.
On a weekly basis, the Nifty gained over 4%, the highest since February 2021. The Sensex jumped by an equal measure, the most since July 2022. The gains were powered by realty, energy and pharma stocks.
"Investors shrugged off negative global markets sentiment as the FIIs making a steady comeback to local equities this week coupled with a sharp drop in the domestic currency level provided a major fillip," Prashanth Tapse, senior vice president of research at Mehta Equities, said.
Moreover, investors can be squaring off their positions ahead of next week's monthly derivates expiry, resulting in a sharp rally, Tapse said.
SBI Life Insurance Co., NTPC Ltd. and Oil & Natural Gas Corp. were the top gainers in the Nifty. Trent Ltd., Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. and Wipro Ltd. declined the most.
ICICI Bank Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd. and Bajaj Finance Ltd. contributed the most to the gains in the Nifty, while Infosys Ltd. and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. weighed on the index the most.
All but one of the 12 sectors on the NSE advanced, with the Nifty Media, Oil & Gas and Energy rising the most. The Nifty Bank ended higher for the seventh day in a row.
Nineteen out of the 21 sectors on the BSE advanced, with Oil & Gas and Utilities rising the most.
The broader markets outperformed the benchmarks as the Nifty Midcap 150 closed 1.3% higher. For the week, the index rallied more than 7%. The Nifty Smallcap 250 advanced 2.14%. On a weekly basis, the index gained 8%.
The market breadth was skewed in favour of the buyers as over 1,600 stocks on the NSE advanced, while less than 500 declined.
Essential Business Intelligence, Continuous LIVE TV, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.
