The domestic benchmark indices extended their winning streak for the second straight session on Tuesday amid hopes for progress in Russian-Ukraine peace talks and ease in Brent crude prices. The strong buying in healthcare and realty space along with firm cues from global peers also lifted market sentiments.
The 30-share Sensex ended 350 points, or 0.6%, higher at 57,944, and the 50-share Nifty settled at 17,325, up 103 points or 0.6%.
The broader market also closed with solid gains, with the BSE midcap and smallcap indices adding 0.66% and 0.63%, respectively.
“Reports of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine along with weakening crude prices helped the global markets to trade firm. Gains in the Asian markets were led by Japanese shares as the Bank of Japan maintained its ultra-loose monetary policy in order to control rising yields,” says Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
“Crude prices are settling following the prospects of a peace talk and in expectation of lower demand from the Chinese market due to increased covid restrictions,” he added.
Among individual stocks, Hero MotoCorp dropped 6.7% after reports claimed that the Income Tax Department detected bogus expenses up to ₹1,000 crore made by the auto major.
Shares of Patanjali-owned Ruchi Soya Industries rallied 15% after the company said that it has also lodged a first information report (FIR) with a police station at Haridwar to take up an investigation into “circulation of unsolicited SMSes advertising the issue”. The company issued the statement after the market regulator SEBI directed the company to give an option to the investors to withdraw their bid for ₹4,300 crore follow-on public offering (FPO).
Top gainers and losers
Out of 30 top shares on the BSE Sensex pack, 20 index heavyweights ended higher and the remaining ten closed lower. The top performer was mortgage lender HDFC, which ended 3% higher. The other notable gainers include Bharti Airtel, UltraTech Cement, HDFC Bank, Dr. Reddy's Laboratories, Kotak Bank, HUL, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank and Infosys.
On the losing side, FMCG major ITC topped the chart by falling 1%, followed by IndusInd Bank, which slipped 0.6%. The other top laggards include Tata Steel, State Bank of India, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC, Power Grid, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj FinServ and TCS.
Healthcare, realty stocks lead rally
On the sectoral front, most of the indices closed in positive terrain, led by healthcare and realty, while PSU and energy space declined the most.
The BSE healthcare index settled 1.36% higher, led by GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, Ipca Laboratories, Sun Pharma Advanced Research Company, Max Healthcare Institute, and Hester Biosciences, which rose between 4.5%-9.5%.
The healthcare sector was followed by realty index, which closed 1.03% higher. The biggest gainers in the real estate space were DLF, Brigade Enterprises, Phoenix Mills, Indiabulls Real Estate, and Prestige Estates Projects.
Global stocks follow Wall Street higher
Shares in the Asia-Pacific region closed mostly higher on Tuesday, while European stocks gained in opening trade, following a strong finish at Wall Street overnight. Investors kept a close eye on the peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, which began in Turkey today.
In the Asia-Pacific region, barring China and Indonesia, all regional markets ended in the green zone, led by 1.12% gain in the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong. Japan’s benchmark index Nikkei 225 added 1.1%, South Korea’s KOSPI rose 0.42%, and ASX 200 index climbed 0.7%.
In a similar trend, Thailand’s SET Composite rose 0.32%, Taiwan’s Weighted index surged 0.16%, and the Straits Times Index in Singapore marginally higher.
In mainland China, the Shenzhen component and the Shanghai Composite dropped 0.46% and 0.33%, respectively, amid concerns about a lockdown in Shanghai, the country’s financial hub. The Jakarta Composite in Indonesia also dived 0.54%.
Meanwhile, European markets traded higher in opening deals amid optimism about the first face-to-face talks between Moscow and Kyiv in more than two weeks. Germany’s DAX jumped 1.9% and the U.K.’s FTSE 100 index gained 1.3% in early deals. France’s CAC index soared 2.4%, and Spain’s IBEX 35 climbed 1.64%.
