Equity benchmarks continued their winning streak on Thursday, with the BSE Sensex gaining 226.85 points to close at 76,759.81 and the NSE Nifty rising 86.40 points to end at 23,249.50. The market was driven by strong performance in defence and PSU stocks ahead of the interim Budget.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, noted that despite fluctuations, the Indian markets ended on a positive note. The fall in oil prices and an ease in US 10-year yield may slow down FIIs outflow.
Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) was the top gainer on the NSE, while Tata Motors was the top loser. The market breadth remained positive, with sectoral performance mixed. The defense index rallied over 2%, while media and IT indices declined more than 1%.
The rupee closed at 86.63 against the US dollar, with focus on India’s upcoming Budget announcement. Gold prices in the domestic market rose to ₹81,400 per 10 gram on MCX, showing a significant divergence from international prices.
Analysts remain cautious about the near-term outlook, with a focus on the Budget announcement. The market saw fluctuations in different sectors, with the volatility index dropping 6.70% to 17.39.
Overall, the market is holding an uptrend continuation formation, which is seen as positive. The upcoming Budget may serve as an inflection point to reverse the current bearish trend and restore growth and consumption, according to experts in the field.
