Markets shrug off US rate hike

Mumbai: The BSE Sensex vaulted over 1,000 points for the second straight session on Thursday, tracking an overall bullish trend in global equities despite the US Federal Reserve hiking rates and signalling further policy tightening to tame inflation. A reversal in selling by foreign portfolio investors and sustained recovery in the rupee further boosted domestic equities, traders said.

The 30-share BSE benchmark rallied 1,047.28 points or 1.84 per cent to finish at 57,863.93. Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty surged 311.70 points or 1.84 per cent to 17,287.05. HDFC was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, spurting 5.50 per cent, followed by Titan, Kotak Bank, Reliance Industries, Asian Paints, Tata Steel and Maruti. Only Infosys and HCL Tech closed lower, skidding up to 1.81 per cent. "Global markets welcomed the Fed decision to hike rates by 25 bps as it was on expected lines. However, the Fed's projection of another six hikes during the year is hawkish. FIIs turning net buyers after a long wait was also a relief for the domestic market.