Stock Market Updates: Buying interest in IT and pharma shares pushed the markets higher
Here are 10 things to know about the markets today:
The Sensex ended 355.01 points - or 0.88 per cent - higher at 40,616.14 and the Nifty settled at 11,908.50, up 95.00 points - or 0.80 per cent - from its previous close.
IndusInd Bank, Sun Pharma, Divi's Lab, Reliance Industries and Cipla, closing between 3.11 per cent and 4.89 per cent higher, were the top gainers in the Nifty basket of 50 shares. On the other hand, UPL, Axis Bank, HDFC, ICICI Bank and Hindalco, down 1.78-3.90 per cent each, were the worst hit among 17 laggards in the benchmark index.
Reliance Industries, Infosys and Kotak Mahindra Bank were the biggest contributors to the gain in Sensex.
Early results in the US presidential election showed a very tight race between incumbent Donald Trump and his Democratic rival Joe Biden, prompting a jump in the dollar, while MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.1 per cent. (Catch Latest Updates Here)
Stocks of export-heavy industries such as IT and pharmaceuticals jumped as the dollar appreciated against a group of currencies overseas. The Nifty IT and Pharma indices closed 1.78 per cent and 2.18 per cent higher respectively.
The rupee weakened by 34 paise - or 0.46 per cent - to end at 74.74 against the US currency, while the dollar index - which tracks the greenback against six other currencies - was last seen trading 0.20 per cent higher, having risen as much as 0.80 per cent earlier.
"Trump or Biden, it will not be a big difference for India. Since both the US parties (Democratic and Republican) are bullish on India and want to develop a strong bilateral relation as a strategic partner... irrespective of who wins the presidential election, a big stimulus is expected after the election," Vinod Nair, head of research at Kochi-based Geojit Financial Services, told NDTV.
The United States is the fifth largest investor in India, according to the government's National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency. US data shows the country has FDI positions of over $45 billion in India as of 2019.
Other Asian share markets were largely lower. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan shed 0.6 per cent, though Japan's Nikkei was still ahead by 1.4 per cent. The E-Mini S&P 500 futures veered wildly between negative and positive, and were last up 0.36 per cent, indicating a wobbly start for US markets on Wednesday.
European share markets started the day on a weak note, with the United Kingdom's FTSE 100 index down 0.22 per cent in early deals. Investors awaited the outcome of Federal Reserve and Bank of England meetings this week, which are expected to at least give a nod to further stimulus
