Markets log 5th straight gains on recovery hopes

Mumbai: Benchmark indices continued their winning run for the fifth straight session on Tuesday as staggered opening of the economy and the Prime Minister assuring of more support to the industry restored investor confidence.

Shrugging off ratings downgrade by Moody's, the 30-share BSE Sensex soared 522.01 points or 1.57 per cent to settle at 33,825.53. Likewise, the NSE Nifty jumped 152.95 points or 1.56 per cent to 9,979.10. Indian stocks also tracked positive Asian peers to strengthen gains.

Analysts, however, said lingering US-China tensions and protests in America remained a concern going ahead. On the Sensex chart, Bajaj Finance was the top gainer, soaring over 8 per cent, followed by Kotak Bank, IndusInd Bank, HDFC, PowerGrid, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank and L&T.

On the other hand, Maruti, ITC, NTPC, Nestle India, Hero Motocorp and Bharti airtel ended as losers on the 30-share index. Sectorally, BSE realty was the top gainer, rallying 4.57 per cent, followed by bankex, finance, consumer durables, utilities and industrials indices. While FMCG was the sole loser. Broader midcap and smallcap surged up to 1.83 per cent. A day after Moody's downgraded India's credit rating to a notch above junk status on growth concerns, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the country will definitely get back its economic growth and said reforms undertaken during the lockdown will help the economy in the long-run.

"Indian markets shrugged off news regarding Moody's credit rating downgrade, which was trumped by the expectation of the economy opening up. The government has again reiterated its commitment to continued reforms to strengthen the economy," Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, said.