Stock Market: Fri-yay! D-St investors richer by Rs 4L cr as Sensex soars 1,000 pts; Nifty breaches 25,700

Tracking positive cues from global and Asian markets amid the onset of a monetary easing policy by the US Fed, domestic benchmarks extended their record run, with the Sensex rising 1,000 points to surpass 84,100 for the first time on Friday, while the Nifty also breached the 25,700 mark.

The combined market capitalization of all BSE-listed stocks shot up by Rs 4 lakh crore to Rs 469.5 lakh crore.

Unlike Thursday’s trading session, the broader market also participated with the smallcap index rallying 0.5%. Among bluechips JSW Steel shares rallied over 3% while other metal stocks like Hindalco and Tata Steel were also trading 2% higher.

The rally in metals came after global brokerage Macquarie released a bullish note on the sector citing resilient domestic fundamentals and easing inputs costs. While raising JSW Steel to outperform rating, it has hiked target prices of Coal India, Tata Steel and Jindal Steel and Power.

IIFL Finance shares rallied 12% after RBI lifted restriction on its gold loan business. Vodafone Idea shares continued to slump and were down around 3%.

IT stocks failed to bounce back and were trading lower for the third straight day.Expert Take
Nifty is expected to trade within the 25,000-26,000 range, with key resistance at 25,500, analysts say.

“With strong market momentum, Nifty looks primed for gains. Stock picks include Titan (CMP ₹3,781) with a target of ₹3,951, and Oberoi Realty and Naukri, both offering bullish potential on intraday weakness,” said Prashanth Tapse of Mehta Equities.

This week, Bank Nifty is up 2% against Nifty’s rise of 0.2%.

“Weakness in the broader market on valuation concerns is another important trend. These trends are likely to continue,” said Dr. V K Vijayakumar of Geojit Financial Services.

Global Markets
The Dow ended above 42,000 for the first time ever, while also logging a record close alongside the S&P 500. Asian shares extended their rally on Friday, benefitting in the afterglow of an outsized interest rate cut in the United States.

Japan’s Nikkei was up 2% after the Bank of Japan kept its interest rates unchanged, as expected, and also upgraded its assessment on consumption.

Brent futures slipped 0.3% to $74.69 a barrel, but are still up 4.2% this week.

The rupee sustained its gaining streak for the third straight session and rose 9 paise to 83.56 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday buoyed by a firm domestic equity market and weakening American currency.

(With inputs from agencies)