Pushpa Bhaju Discloses Substantial Acquisition of 30,00,000...
20 Mar 2026
Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty pared most of their sharp intra-day gains but still ended nearly half a per cent higher on Friday, supported by strong buying in IT, PSU bank and metal stocks amid persistent concerns over fuel-driven inflation. In a volatile trading session, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 325.72 points, or 0.44 per cent, to settle at 74,532.96. During intra-day trade, it had surged 1,079.15 points, or 1.45 per cent, to touch 75,286.39. The broader NSE Nifty also edged higher by 112.35 points, or 0.49 per cent, to close at 23,114.50. The index had jumped as much as 343 points, or 1.49 per cent, to hit 23,345.15 during the session.
Nifty50 top gainers
Tech Mahindra (3.30%)
Tata Steel (3.29%)
Infosys (2.88%)
Trent (2.24%)
Reliance Industries (2.14%)
Sun Pharma (1.88%)
NTPC (1.85%)
Titan Company (1.71%)
HCL Tech (1.67%)
Eternal (1.56%)
Nifty50 top losers
Hindalco (-2.55%)
HDFC Bank (-2.23%)
HDFC Life (-1.56%)
ONGC (-1.38%)
Kwality Wall’s (-1.35%)
Shriram Finance (-1.18%)
Bharat Electronics (-1.10%)
Adani Enterprises (-0.51%)
Kotak Mahindra Bank (-0.39%)
ICICI Bank (-0.38%)
BSE Sensex top gainers
JSW Steel (3.43%)
Tech Mahindra (3.30%)
Tata Steel (3.29%)
Coal India (3.08%)
Infosys (2.88%)
Trent (2.24%)
Reliance Industries (2.14%)
Bajaj Auto (2.06%)
Dr Reddy’s (1.92%)
BSE Sensex top losers
Hindalco (-2.55%)
HDFC Bank (-2.23%)
HDFC Life (-1.56%)
ONGC (-1.38%)
Kwality Wall’s (-1.35%)
Bharat Electronics (-1.10%)
Kotak Mahindra Bank (-0.39%)
ICICI Bank (-0.38%)
Bajaj Finserv (-0.27%)
Axis Bank (-0.26%)
Meanwhile, retail fuel prices moved higher as premium petrol was hiked by Rs 2 per litre, while bulk diesel rates for industrial users were increased by about Rs 22 a litre, reflecting the surge in global crude oil prices amid escalating conflict in West Asia. “Positive comments aimed at de-escalating the conflict and avoiding attacks on oil and gas infrastructure led to a moderate rebound during the day. However, investor sentiment remains fragile, with gains tapering off as participants remain reluctant to hold positions over the weekend amid war-related uncertainties,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited, said, PTI quoted. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.88 per cent to USD 110.7 per barrel. “Indian equities witnessed a relief-driven rebound, primarily driven by short-covering after a sharp build-up of bearish positions in the previous sessions,” Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder, Livelong Wealth, said. On the broader market front, the BSE MidCap Select index gained 0.97 per cent, while the SmallCap Select index slipped 0.32 per cent. Among sectoral indices, BSE PSU Bank advanced 2.19 per cent, followed by Focused IT (2.18 per cent), IT (2.08 per cent), healthcare (1.45 per cent), metal (1.41 per cent) and energy (1.03 per cent). However, financial services, Private Banks index, BSE Top 10 Banks, realty and BSE MidSmall Private Banks Quality Tilt ended in the red. Market breadth remained positive with 2,458 stocks advancing, while 1,804 declined and 170 remained unchanged on the BSE. On a weekly basis, the BSE benchmark slipped 30.96 points, or 0.04 per cent, while the Nifty declined 36.6 points, or 0.15 per cent. “Markets witnessed a volatile session on Friday and ended marginally higher, taking a breather after the previous session’s steep decline. The Nifty opened on a firm note following positive global signals and maintained gains in the early hours. However, selling pressure resumed as the session progressed, leading the index to surrender most of its gains by the close,” Ajit Mishra, SVP – Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said. In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi index ended higher, while Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closed lower. Markets in Japan remained shut due to a holiday. European markets were trading in positive territory. The US markets had ended lower on Thursday. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 7,558.19 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 3,863.96 crore.
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