Indian shares ended higher on Wednesday, tracking gains in Asian markets, on hopes that the worst of the coronavirus epidemic in China may have passed. The BSE Sensex ended 350 points higher at 41,566, while the Nifty50 index settled 93 points higher at 12,201.
Meanwhile, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was also up 0.31 percent as China’s senior medical adviser on Tuesday forecast the epidemic would peak this month, bringing cheer to global investors.
In the domestic market, FMCG, auto and bank stocks led gains among sectors. However, the broader markets underperformed benchmarks with the Nifty Midcap index and Nifty Smallcap index down 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent, respectively.
Investors also awaited key inflation data for the month of January. A Reuters poll from last week showed retail inflation likely rose to a near six-year peak in January as food prices stayed high.
Among stocks, HUL, Kotak Bank, Eicher Motors, ICICI Bank, and Nestle India were the top gainers on the Nifty50 index, while Yes Bank, Bharti Infratel, SBI, IndusInd Bank, and BPCL led the losses.
Sectoral indices were mixed for the day. Nifty FMCG surged the most, up 1.9 percent, whereas Nifty Auto rose 0.7 percent, Nifty Bank added 0.6 percent. Nifty Metal and Nifty IT were also up 0.7 percent and 0.5 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, Nifty PSU Banks lost 1.9 percent, Nifty Pharma was down 0.7 percent, and Nifty Realty lost 0.8 percent for the day.
Hindustan Unilever rallied 5 percent after Motilal Oswal retained its bullish stance. The brokerage said it is seeing significant 'levers' for the company's earnings growth.
Wockhardt shares decline 7 percent after the company said it is going to sell its manufacturing facility in Baddi to Dr. Reddys via a slump sale. Wockhardt will receive nearly Rs 1,850 crore which will help it reduce debt.
First Published: Feb 12, 2020 3:30 PM IST
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