Markets close in green; Sensex gains 226 points & Nifty ends at 16,496.45

Domestic equity benchmark indices ended on a positive note in the volatile session on Monday, August 23, 2021, led by the IT stocks. The S&P BSE Sensex advanced 226.47 points or 0.41 per cent to 55,555.79. The Nifty 50 index gained 45.95 points or 0.28 per cent to close at 16,496.45. The Nifty Bank rose 90.55 points or 0.26 per cent to close at 35,124.40.

The broader market underperformed the Sensex, with the BSE Midcap index slipping 0.9 per cent and the SmallCap index dropping 1.55 per cent.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 786 shares rose and 2464 shares fell. On the Nifty 50 index on NSE, 22 stocks rose and 27 shares fell while one remains unchanged. The top five gainers on Nifty were HCL Technologies (up 4.26 per cent), TCS (up 2.12 per cent), Nestle India (up 2.02 per cent), Bajaj Finserv (up 1.88 per cent) and ONGC (up 1.59 per cent). The top five losers were Grasim (down 3.14 per cent), Adani Ports (down 2.78 per cent), M&M (down 2.63 per cent), Eicher Motors (down 2.33 per cent) and Bajaj Auto (down 2.25 per cent).

COVID-19 Update

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 21,18,44,766 with 44,31,554 deaths. India reported 3,33,924 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 4,34,756 deaths while 3,16,80,626 patients have been discharged, data showed.

Economy

Union government has constituted a committee for doubling the production and quadrupling the exports of handlooms in three years. It will be headed by the Chairman of the Fashion Design Council of India Sunil Sethi.

The committee will submit the final report within 45 days from the day of the constitution.

It will suggest the strategy and policy framework for doubling the production and for improving the quality of handloom products to enhance the income of the weavers.

Jerome Powell's chances for a second term as Federal Reserve chair gained momentum with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's endorsement, a move that would reduce uncertainty about the path for monetary policy amid risks from inflation and the delta variant. Ms Yellen has told senior White House advisers that she favours renominating Mr Powell, whose current term ends in February, according to people familiar with the matter.

President Joe Biden has not decided yet and is likely to make his choice around Labour Day, which falls on September 6 this year, the people said. Her support, reported on Saturday, offers Mr Powell an enormous boost -- given both the weight of her position as Treasury chief and her stature having run the Fed herself for four years. Still, Fed governor Lael Brainard maintains some support inside the administration for the Fed chair job, according to one person familiar with the matter.