The Indian markets continued to reel under the rising threat of a rerun of the Covid-19 pandemic, though positive global cues helped the indices make marginal gains in the early trade on Friday morning.
The 30-share S&P BSE Sensex traded 160.43 points or 0.33 per cent higher at 48,964.11, while the broader NSE Nifty reclaimed 14,644.80 with a 63.35-point or 0.43 per cent rise, tracking gains in index majors HDFC twins, Asian Paints and HCL Tech.
UltraTech Cement was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising over 2 per cent, followed by Asian Paints, HCL Tech, HDFC, Tech Mahindra and M&M. ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance and Axis Bank were among the laggards.
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The Sensex ended Thursday’s trade 259.62 points or 0.53 per cent higher at 48,803.68, and Nifty advanced 76.65 points or 0.53 per cent to 14,581.45. Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 979.70 crore on Thursday.
“A continued surge in the second wave of Covid-19 in the country, which already crossed 2 lakh daily cases, has certainly dented investors’ sentiments. However, the government’s strong effort to expedite vaccination progress in the country by allowing multinational vaccines in domestic markets and absence of complete lockdown in Maharashtra and Delhi offered some comfort to equities,” says Binod Modi, the strategy head at Reliance Securities.
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Covid Crisis
A record single-day rise of 2,17,353 new Coronavirus infections on Friday took India’s tally of Covid-19 cases to 1,42,91,917, while active cases surpassed the 15-lakh mark, according to the Union health ministry.
The death toll increased to 1,74,308 with 1,185 new fatalities, the highest since September 19, 2020, the data says. Registering a steady increase for the 37th day in a row, the active cases have increased to 15,69,743, comprising 10.98 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate dropped to 87.80 per cent.
Currency Market
The rupee appreciated by 23 paise to 74.70 against the US dollar in the opening trade on Friday, supported by positive domestic equities. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 74.76 against the US dollar and then inched higher to 74.70 against the greenback, registering a rise of 23 paise over its previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee had settled at 74.93 against the American currency.
“We can see a bearish channel candlestick chart pattern formed on 15-Minute chart, and price have closed just above this channel, so we will not expect going long until this breakout is confirmed, as this may also turn into a false breakout and we may witness a steep downfall till the levels of 75.05-74.95. On the upper side, resistance may be tested in the range of 75.25-75.35 for upcoming sessions Dollar Index is trading below $92 level indicating for downside momentum will continue towards $91.70 levels,” Kshitij Purohit, Product Manager, Currency & Commodities at CapitalVia Global Research Limited. “The USDINR future could trade in a range of 74.80-75.20 levels in today’s session.”
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Global Markets
Bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Tokyo were trading on a positive note in mid-session deals, while Seoul was in the red. Equities on the Wall Street too ended with gains in overnight sessions.
The international oil benchmark Brent crude was trading flat at $66.94 per barrel.
