Sensex rallies over 1,100 points in early trade

Mumbai: Equity benchmark Sensex surged over 1,100 points in opening session on Friday led by gains in banking stocks ahead of Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das' address.

Positive cues from the global markets too enthused investor sentiment here.

The 30-share BSE barometer was trading 1,140.10 points or 3.81 per cent higher at 31,086.87.

Similarly, the NSE Nifty zoomed 367.10 points, or 4.25 per cent, to 9,008.55.

IndusInd Bank was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying up to 20 per cent, followed by Axis Bank, SBI, Bajaj Finance, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank and M&M. On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, HCL Tech, TCS and Bajaj Auto were the top losers.

In the previous session, equity benchmarks surged for the third straight session, logging their best three-day gains in years, after the government's much awaited stimulus measures for coronavirus lockdown-hit segments lifted sentiments.

The BSE gauge surged 1,410.99 points or 4.94 per cent to settle at 29,946.77; while the Nifty shot up 323.60 points or 3.89 per cent to 8,641.45.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market, as they sold equity shares worth Rs 484.78 crore on Thursday, according to provisional exchange



data.

According to traders, after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Rs 1.70 lakh crore economic stimulus to ease the economic blow of the Covid-19 pandemic, investors are eyeing more sops from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor, who is scheduled to address media at 1000 hours.

Domestic markets have been driven by optimism on USD 2 trillion package to US economy and also in anticipation of an economic package by the RBI for the Indian economy.

Finance Minister's package did not address to the needs of the corporate sector, analysts said, adding that this would, perhaps, be followed by monetary stimulus by RBI along with forbearance on loan repayments.

On the global front, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul were trading on a positive note.

Stocks on Wall Street ended with firm gains in overnight trade.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee appreciated 51 paise to 74.65 against the US dollar in morning trade.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.87 per cent to USD 26.57 per barrel.

The number of deaths around the world linked to the new coronavirus has crossed over 24,000. In India, around 700 Covid-19 cases have been reported so far.