Benchmark indices extended gains for the sixth trading session; Sensex ends above 40,000-mark; Nifty up by 96 pts to 11,835

Equity benchmarks on Thursday, October 8, 2020, extended gains for the sixth session in a row amid positive global cues. The surge was led by gains in banks and IT shares. The Sensex reclaimed 40,000-mark while Nifty regained 11,800-level.

The S&P BSE Sensex jumped 303.72 points, or 0.76 per cent, to 40,182.67. The Nifty 50 index rallied 95.75 points, or 9.82 per cent, to 11,834.60. Nifty Bank gained 226.55 points, or 0.99 per cent, and closed at 23,191.35.

Sellers outpaced buyers. On the BSE, 1244 shares rose and 1437 shares fell. Similarly, 28 shares advanced and 22 declined on the Nifty 50 index. The major gainers on Nifty were Wipro (up 7.34 per cent), CIPLA (4.98 per cent), TCS (up 3.02 per cent), Ultra Cement (up 3.01 per cent) and Infosys (up 2.62 per cent). The losers were GAIL (down 3.11 per cent), ONGC (down 2.77 per cent), ITC (down 1.42 per cent), Eicher Motors (down 1.34 per cent) and Larsen & Turbo (down 0.88 per cent)

On the other hand, the broader market at BSE closed divergently underperforming the Sensex. The BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.29 per cent and the BSE Small-Cap index slipped 0.26 per cent.

India reported 902,425 active cases of Covid-19 infection and 105,526 deaths while 5,827,704 patients have been discharged, data showed. Total Covid-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 36,077,017 with 1,054,674 deaths.

The World Bank has cut India's GDP forecast for FY21. India's GDP for the fiscal started March is expected to contract by 9.6 per cent, compared to June estimates of 4.5 per cent contraction, it said in its South Asia Economic Focus report. It added that it expects growth to return to 5.4 per cent in FY22, assuming COVID-19-related restrictions are completely lifted by 2022 but mostly reflecting base effects.

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) upgraded its assessment of all but one of the country's regional economies as activity picked up from the Covid-19 slump, the bank's quarterly report showed on Thursday. Shikoku, an island in western Japan, was the only area that did not show improvement, according to the Sakura report, the BOJ's equivalent of the Federal Reserve's Beige Book survey.

Three months ago, the bank downgraded all nine of Japan's regions due to the pandemic. With its less pessimistic tone, the BOJ is hinting that the recovery is developing in line with its forecasts, and the upgrades are likely to be reflected in a quarterly outlook the bank will release later this month along with its policy statement. Still, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said earlier today he expects the pace of the recovery to be only moderate.