Benchmarks trade firm; metals shine

Key benchmark indices traded near day's high in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty was hovering above 12,950 level supported by firmness in IT and pharma stocks. Sentiment was boosted by positive global shares amid hopes for imminent coronavirus vaccines.

At 14:26 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, jumped 279.19 points or 0.64% at 44,161.44. The Nifty 50 index rallied 83.95 points or 0.65% at 12,943.85.

The Sensex hit a fresh record high of 44,271.15 in initial deals while the Nifty hit a record high of 12,968.85 in mid afternoon session.

The broader market outpaced the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.23%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 1.3%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,614 shares rose and 1,137 shares fell. A total of 171 shares were unchanged. In Nifty 50 index, 37 stocks advanced while 13 stocks declined.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 5,86,49,890 with 13,88,075 deaths. India reported 4,43,486 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,33,738 deaths while 85,62,641 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Economy:

FICCI's latest quarterly survey on Manufacturing pointed towards recovery of manufacturing sector for Q2 (July-September 2020-21) as compared to previous quarter. The percentage of respondents reporting higher production in second quarter of 2020-21 has increased vis-a-vis the Q1 of 2020-21. The proportion of respondents reporting higher output during July-September 2020 rose to 24%, as compared to 10% in Q1 of 2020-21. The percentage of respondents expecting low or same production is 74% in Q2 2020-21 which was 90% in Q1 of 2020-21. The overall capacity utilization in manufacturing has witnessed a rise to 65% as compared to 61.5% in Q4 2019-20.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Metal index rose 1.36% to 2,812.60. The index has added 2.18% in two days.

Steel Authority of India (up 4.62%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 2.11%), Tata Steel (up 2.03%), Vedanta (up 1.58%), Hindalco Industries (up 1.23%), JSW Steel (up 1.13%) and Coal India (up 0.82%) advanced.

Numbers to Track:

In the foreign exchange market, the partially convertible rupee edged higher to 74.09 compared with its previous closing 74.16.

The yield on 10-year benchmark federal paper rose to 5.881% compared with its closing of 5.877% in the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 4 December 2020 settlement fell 0.01% to Rs 50,207.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for January 2021 settlement added 99 cents to $45.95 a barrel. The contract added 1.72% to settle at $44.96 in the previous trading sessions.

The US dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against majors, fell 0.19% to 92.21.

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