Markets close with small gains; Sensex adds 139 points & Nifty ends at 15,856

Domestic stocks markets ended a volatile session with small gains on Friday, July 23, 2021. The S&P BSE Sensex was up 138.59 points or 0.26 per cent at 52,975.80. The Nifty 50 index closed 32 points or 0.20 per cent higher at 15,856.05. The Nifty Bank index rose 357.10 points or 1.03 per cent to settle at 35,034.40.

In the broader markets underperformed the benchmarks on BSE, the S&P BSE Midcap fell 0.07 per cent and the S&P BSE SmallCap gained 0.11 per cent.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1575 shares rose and 1670 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 index, 21 shares rose and 28 shares declined while one remains unchanged. The top five gainers on Nifty 50 were ICICI Bank (up 3.12%), ITC (up 2.63 per cent), Wipro (up 2.36 per cent), SBI Life (up 2.24 per cent) and Tata Consumers (up 1.66 per cent). The top five losers were Tata Motors (down 2.23 per cent), Grasim (down 2.03 per cent), Adani Ports (down 1.88 per cent), Larsen & Turbo (down 1.53 per cent) and UPL (down 1.06 per cent).

COVID-19 update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 19,25,78,206 with 41,35,859 deaths. India reported 4,05,513 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 4,19,470 deaths while 3,04,68,079 patient have been discharged, data showed.

Joblessness Claims in the US

Jobless claims in the US unexpectedly rose to 419,000, more than the upwardly revised 368,000 from the previous period.

Interest Rates to stay at Low levels in Europe

The European Central Bank on Thursday said interest rates would stay at their current record low levels until it sees inflation "durably" reaching the bank's new target of 2 per cent. The 25-member governing council "expects the key ECB interest rates to remain at their present or lower levels until it sees inflation reaching 2 per cent well ahead of the end of its projection horizon and durably for the rest of the projection horizon," the bank said in a statement, adding that "this may also imply a transitory period in which inflation is moderately above target".

UK retail sales surged unexpectedly in June as consumers spent more in grocery stores to celebrate European championship football, adding momentum to the economic recovery. The volume of goods sold in shops and online rose 0.5% from the month before, data showed on Friday.