By Bharath Rajeswaran
BENGALURU (Reuters) -Indian shares surged to record highs and registered weekly gains on Friday, as an outsized interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve earlier in the week whetted investor risk appetite across global markets.
The NSE Nifty 50 added 1.48% to 25,790.95 and the S&P BSE Sensex gained 1.63% to 84,544.31, logging record closing highs.
The Sensex also rose above 84,000 for the first time on Friday.
For the week, the Nifty and Sensex gained 1.7% and 2%, respectively, posting a fifth week of gains in six.
The 50-basis-points Fed rate cut on Wednesday and data showing smaller-than-expected weekly jobless claims on Thursday sparked hopes of the U.S. economy achieving a soft landing – a scenario where inflation cools without triggering a recession.
The Fed rate cut has improved global sentiment and could trigger a rally in markets because emerging markets like India will become more attractive due to the possibility of higher returns and foreign inflows will also rise, said Divam Sharma, founder and fund manger at Green Portfolio PMS.
Twelve of the 13 major sectors logged gains. The metals index jumped 1.7%, with 12 of its 15 constituents rising.
Demand prospects for metals improved on the back of the Fed rate cut and expectations of stimulus from top consumer China. [MET/L]
JSW Steel leaped 3.5% after Macquarie upgraded stock to “outperform” from “buy”, saying that it sees the global rate easing cycle benefiting domestic steel makers.
The auto index gained 1.9% and financials rose 1.6%, powering the market rally.
The broader, more domestically focussed small- and mid-caps rose 1% and 1.5%, respectively.
Among individual stocks, non-bank lender IIFL Finance jumped 7% after the Reserve Bank of India lifted curbs on its gold loan business.
Mankind Pharma soared 4.5% to a record high after Investec initiated coverage with “buy”, forecasting an upside of 37.7% in 12 months.
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips, Eileen Soreng, Varun H K and Sumana Nandy)
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