MUMBAI: The Indian stock market’s benchmark Sensex closed 89 points higher in a volatile session on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) hiked the policy repo rate by 50 basis points to tame inflation.
The 30 stock S&P BSE Sensex ended the day at 58,387.93 points, which is 89.13 points higher than its previous day’s close at 58,298.80 points.
The market witnessed volatile trading. The Sensex started the day in the positive at 58,421.04 points and rose to a high of 58,649.19 points, but briefly slipped into negative in the afternoon session, touching a low of 58,244.86 points in the intra-day.
The index has closed in the positive for the seventh time in the past eight trading sessions. The Sensex had closed 51.73 points down on Thursday after six consecutive sessions of gains.
The broader Nifty 50 of the National Stock Exchange closed 15.50 points higher at 17,397.50 points against its previous day’s close at 17,382.00 points. It has closed in the positive for the seventh time out of the past eight trading sessions. The Nifty had lost 6.15 points on Thursday, after six consecutive sessions of gains.
Key indices of the Indian equities markets closed in the positive after the RBI hiked policy repo rate by 50 basis points. The Monetary Policy Committee that met during 3-5 August unanimously decided to increase the policy repo rate by 50 basis points to 5.4 per cent, with immediate effect.
Consequently, the standing deposit facility (SDF) rate stands adjusted to 5.15 per cent; and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate to 5.65 per cent. The MPC also decided to remain focused on withdrawal of accommodation to ensure that inflation remains within the target going forward, while supporting growth.
There was good buying support in infra and banking stocks. UltraTech Cement surged 2.86 per cent to Rs 6,780.60, ICICI Bank rose 2.26 per cent to Rs 838.40 and Power Grid Corporation jumped 1.20 per cent to Rs 223.50. Infosys, Wipro, Axis Bank, NTPC, Hindustan Unilever, Nestle India, ITC and L&T were among the major Sensex gainers.
Out of the 30 scrips that are part of the benchmark Sensex, 13 closed in the negative. Mahindra & Mahindra slumped 2.04 per cent to Rs 1236.20. The company’s share slumped after the announcement of the quarterly results.
Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) on Friday reported a standalone net profit of Rs Rs 1,430.2 crore for the quarter ended June 30, registering a year-on-year growth of 67 per cent. The company reported the highest ever quarterly standalone revenue for auto and farm segments at Rs 18,995 crore for the first quarter of the current financial year.
The index heavyweight Reliance Industries Limited closed 1.46 per cent down at Rs 2,533.95 while Maruti Suzuki fell 1.50 per cent to Rs 8,836.05. IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finserv, State Bank of India, Sun Pharma and Tata Steel were among the major Sensex losers. (ANI)