The Indian equity benchmarks rebounded strongly on Monday after the government data showed that India exited recession with economic growth of 0.4 per cent in December quarter. The Sensex rose as much as 1.95 per cent or 958 points at the day’s highest level and Nifty 50 index briefly moved above 14,800. India is among the few major economies to post growth in the last quarter of 2020. For the full year, GDP is estimated to contract by 8 per cent in the financial year, the National Statistical Office (NSO) said in a press release.
The Sensex ended 750 points or 1.53 per cent higher at 49,850 and Nifty 50 index climbed 232 points or 1.60 per cent to settle at 14,762.
Meanwhile, – Asian shares rallied on Monday as some semblance of calm returned to bond markets after last week’s wild ride, while progress in the huge U.S. stimulus package underpinned optimism about the global economy and sent oil prices higher.
“Nifty 50 Index is still trading below the resistance level of 14850. The breakout above 14850 is critical for the market to regain its upside momentum. While, it is subject to further price action evolution. It is prudent to wait for a decisive breakout above 14850 and technical factors to improve before going long in the market,” Ashis Biswas, head of research at CapitalVia Global Research said.
HDFC, HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank, Infosys and Reliance Industries were among the top movers in the Sensex.
Buying was visible across the board as all the 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange, barring the index of PSU Banks, ended higher led by Nifty Media index’s over 4 per cent gain. Nifty Auto, Bank, Metal, Realty, IT and FMCG indexes also rose between 1-2 per cent.
Mid- and small-cap shares also witnessed buying interest as Nifty Midcap 100 index rose 1.8 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 index climbed 2 per cent.
Except Bharti Airtel, all the Nifty 50 shares ended higher led by Power Grid’s 7 per cent gain. ONGC, Grasim Industries, UPL, Shree Cements, UltraTech Cement, Hero MotoCorp, Asian Paints, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Divi’s Labs also rose between 4-5.5 per cent.
The overall market breadth was extremely positive as 1,949 shares ended higher while 1,120 closed lower on the BSE.