Sensex rebounds 1,414 pts from day's low, Nifty ends near 16,800 ahead of GDP data

NEW DELHI: Benchmark indices recovered from early hiccups and managed to end with gains thanks to late buying seen on Monday.

The deepening fallout in Russia due to sanctions did not do much damage back home.

Pressured by weak global cues, the domestic indices opened with cuts but eventually staged a strong recovery lifted by metal stocks. However, selling in banks and financials kept the gains in check.

The 30-share pack Sensex climbed 388.76 points or 0.70 per cent to close at 56,247.28. Its broader peer NSE Nifty advanced 135.50 points or 0.81 per cent to 16,7933.90.

“Metal stocks rallied on hopes that curtailing Russian exports would help Indian steelmakers to capture the export market share,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

Market at a glance:

• India VIX, barometer of future volatility, spiked 7% to 29
• Future Group stocks rallied up to 20% after RIL action
• Rain Industries tanked 8% on poor Q3 show
• Religare Enterprises fell 2% as arm defaults on interest payments
• Reliance Industries gained 3% after analysts upgrade target prices

Among the bluechip names, Hindalco Industries was the biggest gainer, rising 7.16 per cent. Tata Steel, Power Grid, JSW Steel, Bharat Petroleum, Titan, Coal India and Reliance Industries were other major gainers.

HDFC Life Insurance was the top loser in the Nifty pack, falling 2.95 per cent. Dr Reddy’s Labs, Axis Bank, M&M, HDFC Bank, HDFC, Eicher Motors, Hero MotoCorp and Tata Motors were other names that ended in the red.

Broader market indices ended higher, outperforming their headline peers. Nifty Smallcap rose 0.59 per cent and Nifty Midcap advanced 0.97 per cent. Nifty 500, the broadest index on NSE, ended up 0.85 per cent.

Amber Enterprises, Tanla Platforms, Nalco, Jindal Steel, Bharat Electronics and Hindustan Aeronautics were top gainers from mid and smallcap indices. SRF, Gujarat Gas, AU Small Finance, Carborundum Universal, Kajaria Ceramics and Rain Industries were major losers from broader market space.

Sectoral matrix was mixed on NSE. Nifty Metal was the biggest gainer, up 4.95 per cent, followed by Nifty IT and Nifty Media. Nifty Auto was the top loser, down 0.69 per cent. Nifty Bank and Nifty Financial Services were other losers.
Market breadth was in favour of gainers as 2,115 stocks ended in the green, while 1332 names settled with cuts. As many as 103 securities hit 52-week highs, mostly from the smallcap space. Meanwhile, 56 names hit 52-week lows, mostly from the microcap space. About 15 stocks hit upper circuit limits and 4 lower circuit limits.

European markets were trading lower. London-based FTSE declined 1.39 per cent, while Paris and Frankfurt fell 3.25 per cent and 2.81 per cent, respectively. In Asia, barring Singapore and Hong Kong, all markets ended in the green.