Sensex and Nifty Rebound Led by ITC as Crude Prices Ease
The Indian equity markets bounced back on Monday, with the Sensex climbing 473 points and the Nifty surpassing the 22,500 mark. This recovery came as FMCG, energy, and banking stocks saw strong gains, supported by favorable global market conditions.
The Sensex ended the day at 72,382.47, up 472.77 points or 0.66%, while the Nifty rose 133.80 points or 0.60% to close at 22,555.75. The FMCG sector led the rally with a 1.67% gain, followed by telecom, consumer durables, and financial services. ITC was the top performer, surging nearly 5%, while other notable gainers included Bajaj Finance, Adani Ports, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, and Bharti Airtel.
In contrast, HCL Technologies was the biggest loser, dropping about 3.3%. Other decliners included Max Healthcare, HDFC Bank, Sun Pharma, Infosys, Cipla, Apollo Hospitals, and Asian Paints. Market sentiment improved as crude oil prices eased from recent highs, and softer-than-expected US jobs data reduced fears of aggressive interest rate hikes by the US Federal Reserve. However, risks such as foreign institutional investor selling and high global bond yields remained.
Brent crude prices traded around $102 per barrel, providing some relief to India's economy, which heavily relies on oil imports. Meanwhile, the rupee weakened by 5 paise to close provisionally at 96.30 against the US dollar, influenced by rising crude prices and ongoing foreign fund outflows. Traders are now focusing on foreign capital flows and the Reserve Bank of India's upcoming monetary policy decision.
In commodities, MCX gold fell about 0.47% to Rs 1,47,170 per 10 grams, while December silver futures gained around 1% to Rs 2,28,150 per kg, highlighting mixed trends in precious metals.