New Delhi: Indian markets continued their upward trend and Sensex touched all-time high after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced on Friday that it would keep policy rates unchanged at 6.5 percent and it became clear that Narendra Modi will again take oath as Prime Minister of India.
The BSE Sensex touched an all-time high, while the Nifty 50 index closed positively at 23,267.75, marking a gain of 446.35 points or 1.96 percent, and hitting a high of 23,320.20. The Sensex followed suit, closing at 76,693.36, up by 1,618.85 points or 2.16 percent. (Also Read: India’s Forex Reserves At Historic High Of $651.5 Bn, CAD To Dip: RBI)
“At the RBI MPC meeting earlier today, the benchmark interest rate was left unchanged, as expected, with a continued focus on inflation. US jobless claims data came in at 229,000, slightly above the expected 220,000. Later today, investors will focus on the US Non-Farm Payrolls and Unemployment Rate data for further insights into Federal Reserve actions” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head equity Research, Kotak Securities (Also Read: RBI Announces UPI Lite Integration With E-Mandate Framework; Now You Can Autofill Your UPI Lite Balance)
Top performers in the Nifty 50 included M&M, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, and Infosys, whereas SBI Life Insurance and Tata Consumer Products experienced losses. Across sectors, all indices showed gains, with the IT sector leading with a 3.37% increase, followed by the Auto, Oil & Gas, Metal, and Realty sectors, each up by more than 2 percent.
During the Monetary Policy announcement, the RBI also revised upwards its FY25 gross domestic product (GDP) forecast to 7.2 percent from the previous 7 percent, boosting investor confidence in Indian markets.
“The anticipation of stability within the coalition government at the center, coupled with the RBI’s upward revision of its growth forecast for FY25 to 7.2%, fuelled a broad-based rally in the domestic market. The Indian market surpassed its previous record high set on exit-poll day and reached a fresh peak. Though the last mile towards the inflation target remains sticky, investors are expecting the MPC to be one step closer to the easing cycle” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.
In the broader market, the BSE SmallCap rose by 2.16 per cent, while the BSE MidCap climbed by 1.20 per cent. European shares, on the other hand, opened slightly lower, with the Stoxx 600 index down by 0.1 per cent. Despite this, technology stocks saw gains, while real estate and insurance stocks faced losses due to the European Central Bank’s cautious approach towards rate cuts.