New Delhi: Indian benchmark equity indices ended higher on Thursday after a volatile trading session, as strong gains in automobile stocks and upbeat quarterly earnings helped offset investor concerns over the US Federal Reserve’s hawkish policy stance.
According to media reports, the BSE Sensex rose 273.55 points, or 0.35%, to close at 77,928.15, while the NSE Nifty 50 gained 66.95 points, or 0.28%, to settle at 24,317.15.
Markets fluctuated throughout the day as investors weighed rising US bond yields, geopolitical tensions in West Asia and volatile crude oil prices against resilient domestic fundamentals, healthy corporate earnings and continued foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows.
Automobile stocks led the rally after several companies reported encouraging quarterly results. The Nifty Auto index climbed 1.63%, providing the biggest boost to the broader market. Oil and gas, information technology, media and consumer durables also ended in positive territory.
Among the major gainers on the Sensex were automobile manufacturers, along with banking, energy and information technology stocks. However, losses in select ports, aviation, financial services and technology shares limited the market’s overall gains.
Sectoral performance remained mixed. Realty was the worst-performing sector, falling 2.06%, while chemicals also ended lower. Financial services, private banks and FMCG indices closed marginally in the red.
Broader markets underperformed the benchmark indices. The Nifty Midcap and Smallcap indices ended lower, indicating profit booking after the recent rally. India VIX, the market’s volatility gauge, rose 1.22% to 12.16.
According to media reports, crude oil prices remained volatile amid ongoing tensions in West Asia. Brent crude traded around $91 a barrel, while US benchmark WTI crude remained near $84 a barrel.
Market analysts said investors remained cautious after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged while maintaining a firm stance on inflation. Higher US bond yields and uncertainty over future rate decisions continued to weigh on global sentiment.
Despite external challenges, analysts noted that sustained FII inflows, a stronger rupee and encouraging first-quarter corporate earnings supported domestic equities, prompting investors to buy selectively during market declines.
The rupee ended largely unchanged against the US dollar, as gains from foreign inflows were offset by higher crude oil prices.
