Markets extend rally for fourth day; Nifty settles above 18,200; Sensex soars over 500 points; M-;M, Airtel stocks outperform

12 Jan 2022 , 04:18 PM

Domestic equities closed higher for the fourth consecutive day with the Nifty closed 0.9% higher. The market opened higher taking positive global cues, ahead of strong IT result expectations. The BSE Sensex jumped 533 points or 0.88 per cent to close at 61,150, while the Nifty settled 157 points or 0.87 per cent higher at 18,212.

The broader market outperformed the main indices, Nifty MidCap gained 1.25% while SmallCap index was up 0.9%. All sectoral indices were closed higher except Nifty Pharma, Nifty Realty gained 1.9% followed by Auto (1.45%) and Nifty Metal (1.33%).

Mahindra & Mahindra was the top Nifty gainer as the stock zoomed 4.53 per cent to Rs879.50. Bharti Airtel, IndusInd Bank, Reliance Industries and Hindalco were also among the gainers. Whereas, Titan, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Shree Cement, Britannia and Cipla were among the laggards.

On the earning front, IT heavyweights TCS, Wipro and Infosys will kick start the third-quarter (Q3) numbers today.

US equities ended higher with the IT sector leading the gain. The markets appeared to take testimony by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell in stride as they looked for clues to the pace of future rate increases and other plans for tightening monetary policy in 2022. The Dow Jones rose 0.5%, S&P 500 advanced 0.9%, while Nasdaq jumped 1.4%. The markets digested Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s testimony before the Senate Banking Committee in a hearing on his nomination to serve a second term. Powell painted a picture of a soft landing for the economy as the Fed moves to remove emergency stimulus measures and begin raising interest rates.