Indices gain for 3rd straight session as Trump health boosts global markets

The benchmark Sensex darted up for the third consecutive session on Monday, spurred by the robust gains in information technology (IT) and banking stocks, which received a leg up thanks to a broad surge in global markets.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) soared over 7 per cent after the IT services company announced that it would consider a share buyback proposal later this week.

Starting off on a strong note, the Sensex zoomed to the day’s peak of 39,263.85, before ceding ground to settle at 38,973.70 — up 276.65 points or 0.71 per cent.

Likewise, the broader Nifty rose 86.40 points or 0.76 per cent to close at 11,503.35.

TCS was the top performer on the Sensex chart, rallying 7.30 per cent. It became the second Indian entity after Reliance Industries to cross the Rs 10-trillion market valuation mark.

Other prominent gainers included Tata Steel, Sun Pharma, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, IndusInd Bank, HCL Tech, ICICI Bank, HUL, Kotak Bank, and HDFC Bank, gaining up to 4.71 per cent. On the other hand, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Auto, PowerGrid, and ITC were among the major laggards, shedding as much as 2.7 per cent.

With the global markets’ focus turning to US President Donald Trump’s Covid treatment, reports of an improvement in his health boosted investor sentiment, according to analysts.

Asian indices rose, following Trump’s health update, while European markets also opened on a firm footing.

“Indian indices had a very positive start, taking cues from the global market and in anticipation of the Supreme Court verdict of compounding of loans during the moratorium period. 

Gains came off when the decision was deferred to next week, but this delay is unlikely to change the framework for small borrowers and the banking sector, given that the government and Reserve Bank of India are expected to maintain buoyancy of the matter. 

“In the near term, the market is expected to maintain its optimism based on Trump’s recovery, development of a stimulus in the US and India, the upcoming Q2 results in India, and the Supreme Court’s final verdict,” said Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services.

Sectorally, the BSE IT index jumped 4.06 per cent, followed by teck, metal, healthcare, and bankex. In the broader market, the BSE MidCap shed 0.18 per cent, while the BSE SmallCap gauge rose 0.38 per cent, underperforming the benchmark.