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FII inflows, easing economy push Sensex up 1% in a week

Indian equities ended their two-day winning streak Friday, with benchmark indices ending marginally lower amid a range-bound trading session as the Parliament was adjourned for the second consecutive day due to uproar over FDI bills from the Opposition.

Indian equities ended their two-day winning streak Friday, with benchmark indices ending marginally lower amid a range-bound trading session as the Parliament was adjourned for the second consecutive day due to uproar over FDI bills from the Opposition.

Both the houses, the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, were adjourned after Bharatiya Janata Party opposed the proposal to allow foreign retailers to set-up shop in India. The government has called for an all-party meeting on November 26 to end the logjam.

The Sensex ended the day at 18,506.57, down 10.77 points or 0..06% from close Thursday, while the Nifty settled at 5,626.60, down 1.15 points or 0.02% from the previous close. The lull was seen in broader markets too, with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap index ending down 0.06% and 0.20%, respectively.

Ranbaxy Laboratories was the biggest loser Friday, falling over 3% to its lowest level in three months as the company has announced the recall of the generic version of Pfizer’s cholesterol drug Lipitor in the US. Stocks like NTPC, GAIL, Cipla were among the biggest losers, all ending down in the range of 2-3%.

?Though the Government made a sincere attempt to revive the policy engine, much remains a work in progress,? said Dipankar Mitra, senior VP ? research, Motilal Oswal Securities, adding that political uncertainty continues to remain a serious concern for the markets.

However, on a weekly basis, Indian equities gained 1% tracking the optimism in global markets after reports suggested sentiments were improving on US President Barack Obama’s positive remarks with respect to the fiscal cliff issue. According to Bloomberg, the Sensex has gained 197.2 points or 1.08% week-on-week, while the Nifty has gained 52.55 points or 0.94%. ?The US Fed has been supporting the US government and we are optimistic that the fiscal cliff will be avoided,? said Andrew Holland, CEO, Ambit Investment Advisory.

Consumer goods continued its upmove after a spell of consolidation in recent weeks. The BSE FMCG index gained 2.6% from last week. In addition, automobile and banking stocks also advanced as investors remained positive on cyclicals and interest rate sensitive stocks. BSE Auto index gained 1.53%, while CNX Bankex advanced 1.24% on a weekly basis.

Mahindra & Mahindra rose nearly 6%, the top gainer this week. Maruti Suzuki also locked in handsome gains of 1.9% from last week. Consumer goods giant ITC gained nearly 4%. On the other hand, high beta stocks like realty, IT and power ended down 1% from last week.

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First published on: 24-11-2012 at 02:57 IST
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