Sensex closes at 38,672.91, Nifty also gains

Mumbai: Rising for the second straight day, the BSE Sensex vaulted over 127 points while the NSE Nifty finished above the 11,600-mark on Friday on heavy buying in auto and metal stocks amid robust foreign fund inflows and positive global leads.

The 30-share Sensex started off on a strong footing at 38,675 points and touched a high of 38,748.54 before winding up at 38,672.91, recording a rise of 127.19, or 0.33 per cent. The 50-share NSE Nifty closed at 11,623.90, higher by 53.90 points, or 0.47 per cent.

Analysts attributed the continuing market rally to robust investor sentiment driven by foreign fund inflows, stronger rupee and a likely positive outcome of the US-China trade talks. "Market continued the upward movement supported by global cues, which rallied in expectation of US-China trade deal.

However, the market is facing resistance while nearing the all-time high," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Sectorally, the BSE metal index gained the most at 2.33 per cent, followed by basic materials (2.10 per cent), healthcare (1.37 per cent) and auto (1.22 per cent).

FMCG, utilities and bankex indices closed in the red, losing up to 0/14 per cent.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 3,594.51 crore on Thursday, while domestic institutional investors were sellers to the tune of Rs 2,080.22 crore, provisional data available with BSE showed.

The Indian rupee on Friday appreciated by 13 paise to 69.17 against the $ intra-day.