Sensex ends above 72k; Nifty reclaims 21,900; HDFC Life rises 5%, TCS jumps 4%

Domestic equity market rebounded sharply on Tuesday after a flat opening. Buying in all major sectors pushed the headline indices higher, despite muted global signals. However, traders will be looking at rate cut cues from the global markets.

The 30-share pack BSE Sensex jumped 454.67 points, or 0.63 per cent, to end at 72,186.09. NSE's Nifty50 gave up 157.70 points, or 0.72 per cent, to end the session at 21,929.40. In the broader markets, BSE midcap and smallcap indices surged up to 1.25 per cent each. Fear gauge India VIX inched up about a per cent to 15.79-mark.

Markets reversed Monday’s decline and gained, in continuation to the prevailing consolidation range. After the flat start, the Nifty gradually inched higher as the day progressed and finally settled closer to the day’s high. Most sectors traded in sync with the move, said Ajit Mishra, SVP - Technical Research, Religare Broking.

"All key sectors, barring banking, are attracting buying on a rotational basis and that is helping the index to maintain a positive tone amid consolidation. The recent price action indicates the prevailing tone to continue and traders should maintain their focus on stock selection. We reiterate our preference for metal, IT, auto and pharma for long trades," he said.

On a sectoral front, the Nifty IT index surged about 3 per cent, while the Nifty oil & gas index gained 2.67 per cent. The Nifty metal index was up 1.59 per cent for the day. The Nifty auto, pharma and healthcare indices gained more than a per cent each. Only Nifty FMCG, PSU Bank and private bank indices settled in red.

In the Nifty50 pack, Bharat Petroleum gained more than 6.2 per cent, while HDFC Life Insurance Company gained over 5 per cent. HCL Technologies jumped 4.40 per cent, while Tata Consultancy Services rose about 4 per cent. Among the laggards, Power Grid Corporation shed 2.7 per cent, while Britannia Industries declined 2.1 per cent. IndusInd Bank and ITC were other key losers.

The market exhibited a positive breadth, registering moderate gains, with investors showing reluctance to significantly trim their positions ahead of the RBI MPC meeting. Expectations for a dovish monetary policy buoyed sentiment in the bond market, said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

"Meanwhile, Oil & Gas stocks held a modest advance as the market weighed down geopolitical risks in the Middle East and awaited improvements in the weekly US crude inventory today," he said.

A total of 3,944 shares were traded on BSE on Tuesday, of which 2,354 settled with gains. 1,504 stocks ended the session with cuts while 86 shares remained unchanged. During the day, 482 shares hit their upper circuit, whereas 273 shares tested the lower circuit levels for the day.

In the broader markets, Ajmera, Triveni Turbine and Arvind Smartspaces hit an upper circuit of 20 per cent. Jindal Worldwide surged about 19 per cent, while Emami Papers jumped more than 16 per cent. Nitin Spinners advanced about 15 per cent. YES Bank rose 11 per cent for the day.

Among the laggards, Best Agrolife dropped more than 10 per cent, BEML Land Assets and Tourism Finance Corporation of India tanked over 8 per cent each. Dharmaj Crop Guard tanked 7 per cent each, while Prince Pipes settled 7 per cent each. GIC Housing Finance settled 6 per cent lower.

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