Sensex rises for 6th straight session

Mumbai: Despite witnessing volatility throughout the session, key equity indices advanced for the sixth straight day on Monday over sustained inflow of foreign funds and firm global markets.

Almost all the Asian markets closed on a positive note while the European indices such as CAC 40 and FTSE 100 traded in the green.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed 70.75 points or 0.19 per cent higher at 38,095.07 while the broader Nifty finished 35.35 points or 0.31 per cent higher at 11,462.20.

“The market failed to hold the opening momentum as profit booking emerged after the recent sharp rally. The liquidity situation in the market is improving. The rupee continued to gain strength over dollar while the domestic 10-year yield slid,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

“The auto index dragged the most due to mixed demand and higher inventory levels. On the other hand, the investors are awaiting the Fed policy later in the week to get more cues on the global market movement,” Nair said.

Among the top gainers were Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries and Tata Steel, which gained in the range of 1 to 3 per cent.

Maruti Suzuki and Hero MotoCorp declined between 2 and 3 per cent while Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech and Mahindra and Mahindra slipped in the range of 1 to 2 per cent.

Institutional investors, responsible for most of the trading in the financial markets are betting big on Indian markets, especially, banking stocks, which may drive major indices to fresh highs ahead of the polls. The Foreign Institutional Investment (FIIs) in the equities category during the month of March was worth Rs17,055 crore, highest since November 2017.

Indo-Asian News Service