BENGALURU: Indian shares closed slightly higher on Friday, helped by growing expectation of better December-quarter corporate earnings on the back of solid results for the July-September period.
The NSE Nifty 50 index ended 0.11% higher at 11,890.6, while the S&P BSE Sensex gained 0.09% to 40,165.03. The Nifty and the Sensex ended the week up 2.65% and 2.83%, respectively.
Stocks have been gaining steadily over the last few sessions, buoyed by positive global cues, a strong set of corporate results and expectations of a better third quarter.
Metals stocks led gains, with the Nifty sub-index up 2.44%. Meanwhile, the Nifty state-owned bank index rose 1.44%.
Zee Entertainment’s shares recorded their best intraday gain in more than 12 years and finished up 18.46% to top the gainers list on the Nifty.
Yes Bank was the top loser with a 6.11% drop.
Indian shares have seen steady gains in the last few sessions buoyed by positive global cues, a strong set of corporate results and expectations of a better third quarter.
The Nifty Media index rose as much as 3.49%, gaining the most among the 14 sectoral NSE indexes.
The Nifty PSU Bank index, which tracks the country’s state-run lenders, rose as much as 0.83%, with shares of Central Bank of India rising nearly 6%.
“Today is the first day of the new derivative segment and we have had one of the best months in the last four months, so that positivity has continued,” said A.K. Prabhakar, head of research at IDBI Capital in Mumbai.
Auto stocks will be in focus on Friday as automakers are set to report their monthly sales data. The Nifty Auto index inched up 0.24% in early trade.
State-owned oil retailer Indian Oil Corporation Ltd slipped as much as 4.22% and was the biggest loser on the NSE index after the refiner recorded a 83% slide in quarterly profit.
Meanwhile, India’s fiscal deficit in the six months through September approached 93% of the target for the full year, limiting the scope for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to consider more tax cuts to boost economic growth.—Reuters
