Sensex gains 380 points to end at 51,018, Nifty closes at 15,301

Snapping the sideways movement, the domestic stocks markets ended with a gain of more than 0.61 per cent on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. The S&P BSE Sensex regained 51,000 mark, which was last seen on March 12, 2021. The Nifty at the National Stock Exchange ended above 15,300 level.

The S&P BSE Sensex gained 379.99 points or 0.75 per cent to close at 51,017.52. The Nifty 50 climbed 93 points or 0.61 per cent to finish at 15,301.45. The Nifty Bank index also added 22.20 points or 0.06 per cent to settle at 34,684.20.

In the broader markets, the S&P BSE MidCap index slipped 0.14 per cent while the S&P BSE SmallCap index rose 0.69 per cent.

Buyers outpaced sellers. On the BSE, 1,959 shares rose and 1,178 shares fell. On the NSE, at the Nifty 50 index, 31 shares rose and 18 shares declined while one share remains unchanged. The top five gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finserv (up 4.61 per cent), Bajaj Finance (up 2.67 per cent), Infosys (up 2.45 per cent), Grasim (up 2.41 per cent) and Wipro (up 1.87 per cent). The top five losers were PowerGrid (down 3.01 per cent), Hindalco (down 2.51 per cent), JSW Steel (down 2.42 per cent), Tata Steel (down 2.28 per cent) and NTPC (down 1.90 per cent).

COVID-19 Update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 16,78,49,492 with 34,85,810 deaths. India reported 24,95,591 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 3,11,388 deaths while 2,43,50,816 patients have been discharged, data showed.

India reported 2,08,921 new COVID-19 cases and 4,157 deaths in the last 24 hours. India has conducted 22.17 lakh tests on Monday, the highest number of tests conducted in a single day.

FDI inflow in India

On Monday, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said FDI in India grew 19 per cent to $59.64 billion during 2020-21 on account of measures taken by the government on the fronts of policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business.

The total FDI, including equity, re-invested earnings and capital, rose 10 per cent to the "highest ever" of $81.72 billion during 2020-21 against $74.39 billion in 2019-20.

Super Cyclone Yaas

Super Cyclone Yaas, which has been categorised as the "very severe cyclonic storm", hit the Odisha coast today morning. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said the landfall process began sometime around 9 AM and hit the Dhamra port in Bhadrak district, Odisha. Over 10 lakh people have been relocated to storm shelters in Odisha and West Bengal. While other states such as Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Andaman and Nicobar islands have also put a contingency plan in action, it is Odisha that is likely to be at the centre of the devastating storm. In terms of severity, it may be slightly lower than Cyclone Tauktae.