BSE Closing: Up 20,957.81
NSE Closing:
Up by 6,241.10
|
Indian shares trimmed their early
morning gains a bit and were trading 1.2% higher in the afternoon session on
Thursday, while the rupee strengthened against dollar to trade at 61 levels
after exit polls indicated the main opposition Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) was
set to win four of five state elections to give it momentum ahead of national
voting next year.
The 30-share benchmark S&P BSE
Sensex provisionally closed 1.16%, or 240.08 points, higher at 20,948.79, while
the National Stock Exchange’s broader 50-share Nifty gained 1.24%, or 76.45
points, to 6,237.40.
Earlier in the day, the Sensex had
risen as much as 2.21%, or 456.89 points, to 21,165.60, while the Nifty had
gained as much as 2.27%, or 139.60 points, to 6,300.55.
Taking cues from the strong stock
market movement, the Indian rupee also opened stronger at 61.755 per dollar
compared with Wednesday’s close of 62.055. At 3.37pm, the domestic currency was
trading at 61.84 per dollar, up 0.36%, from its last close.
Since January this year, the rupee has
weakened 11.06% and has been the third biggest loser among Asian currencies
after the Indonesian rupiah and the Japanese yen during that period.
If exit polls are proven correct, the
outcome would point to a critical trend less than six months before the general
election.
Late on Wednesday, several exit polls
projected that the BJP would score an outright win in Rajasthan and Madhya
Pradesh and hold the edge in a close finish in Delhi and Chhattisgarh.
Significantly, the exit polls also
project a spectacular debut for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi, where the
election was held on Wednesday.
“The market seems to have factored the
positive results, and if there are bigger surprises in store like the BJP
winning more seats than expected in Delhi, market could see a major boost next
week,” said Deven Choksey, chief executive officer and managing director, KR
Choksey Shares and Securities Pvt. Ltd.
He added that these election results
could give a prelude as to what 2014 general elections could end up like.
“The market wants the growth path to
return. (Narendra) Modi has been very proactive about industrial growth and
progress in Gujarat, and investors are hoping they see him at the Centre,” he
said pointing to the rise in banking and capital goods indices.
The S&P BSE Bankex led the gains
for the Sensex with a 4.33% rise, followed by the Capital Goods index which
gained 3.59%.
Leading private lenders ICICI Bank Ltd
and HDFC Bank Ltd were up 6.66% and 4.45%, respectively. Bharat Heavy Electricals
Ltd (Bhel) rose 3.93%.
The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark
bond was trading at 8.771%, compared with its Tuesday’s close of 8.779%.
The dollar index, which measures the US
currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 80.595, down
0.02%from the previous close of 80.619.
BSE Top Gainers:
ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Larsen, BHEL, Maruti Suzuki, Coal India, Tata Steel, Tata Power, SBI, HDFC, Reliance, Jindal Steel, GAIL, ONGC, Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, Hero Motocorp, Wipro, Bajaj Auto
BSE TOP Losers:
Sun Pharma, Dr Reddys Labs, ITC, HUL, NTPC, Cipla, Tata Motors, TCS, Sesa Sterlite, Infosys, M&M
NSE Top Gainers:
IDFC, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Larsen, Axis Bank, BHEL, Bank of Baroda, Maruti Suzuki, Coal India, IndusInd Bank, PNB, Grasim, BPCL, SBI, HDFC, Jaiprakash Asso, Tata Power, Tata Steel, DLF, Reliance, Kotak Mahindra, NMDC, GAIL, ONGC, Jindal Steel, Ambuja Cements, Hero Motocorp, Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, Power Grid Corp, Asian Paints, Bajaj Auto, ACC, Wipro, M&M.
NSE Top Losers:
Sun Pharma, Dr Reddys Labs, Lupin, ITC, HUL, NTPC, Ranbaxy Labs, Sesa Sterlite, HCL Tech, TCS, Cipla, Tata Motors, Cairn India, Infosys, UltraTechCement.
