Sensex logs 10% gains in pre-Diwali week
MUMBAI: In one of the best weekly gains in recent times, sensex closed over 8.8% up as foreign funds came back to buy Indian stocks, as the US midterm polls raised hopes of policy stability, and also of a diplomatic resolution to the war in West Asia, which pulled down crude prices by about 20% in less than two weeks. In fact, the Sensex's seven-session pre-Diwali rally, during which it notched up a 10.6% gain, was also its best such run in 35 years. On Friday, the index gained 1,781 points, its third consecutive session of four-figure point gain, despite an overnight crash in the US market, led by a rout in AI stocks. During its seven-session rally, the sensex added 7,782 points. This surge mainly rode a huge resurgence of buying by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), which bought Indian stocks worth about Rs 49,500 crore or about $5.2 billion on a net basis, shows data from NSDL and BSE. Nifty on NSE also rallied in a similar manner with the index up 8.6% or 1,977 points this week to close at 25,030 points. The sensex closed above the psychologically important 80K mark and the Nifty above the 25K mark after more than nine months.
M&M, Bajaj Fin, HDFC on a roll
A major part of this gain came in the last three sessions, after the Democratic Party won a huge mandate in the US midterm elections, which is now seen as a rebuke to the policies of President Donald Trump. The results, in addition to pulling down crude prices, also strengthened the rupee, which on Friday closed at a two-month high against the greenback. According to Ponmudi R, CEO, Enrich Money, on Friday, the domestic markets demonstrated considerable resilience despite the sharp sell-off in global technology stocks. "In a notable departure from the weakness across Wall Street and other Asian markets, domestic equities largely shrugged off concerns over the unwinding of AI-related trades." During the week, among the sensex stocks, Mahindra and Mahindra (up 16%), Bajaj Finance (16%) and HDFC Bank (14%) gained the most. And on Friday, Bharti Airtel regained its position as the second most valued company in India with a market capitalisation of Rs 13.1 lakh crore, ahead of Jio Platforms at Rs 12.9 lakh crore. Friday was also the last trading session of Samvat Year 2082. During the year, while sensex was down 4% and nifty 3.1%, silver gained 24% while gold was up nearly 17%. The year also saw mutual funds, backed by strong inflows through the SIP route, pump in a net Rs 5.5 lakh crore while FPIs recorded a net outflow of Rs 2.3 lakh crore. Global fund managers feel that there has been some dilution of India's appeal to investors due to cyclical factors while the country's structural advantages remain in place. "What diluted India's near-term appeal is high crude, a weak rupee and the availability of high-growth opportunities elsewhere. These should be cyclical rather than structural," said Hari Shyamsunder, CFA, VP & Senior Institutional Portfolio Manager - India Equities, Templeton Global Investments. "The rupee has been more stable over the last five months. If crude softens sustainably and growth faces headwinds elsewhere, the picture could change quickly," the fund manager said. Mahurat trading for Samvat 2083 will take place on Sunday.
End of Article
