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Benchmark stock indices Nifty and Sensex closed lower in a highly volatile week as a slew of Indian companies reported their results. On Friday, the Sensex closed 0.13% lower at 52,586.84 and Nifty closed down 0.10% at 15,763.05. For the week, Sensex fell 0.7% and Nifty dropped 0.6%. In the whole week, only on Thursday the indices managed to close in the green led by gains in metal stocks. For the month, Sensex edged up 0.2% and Nifty rose 0.26%.
Nifty Metal index was the star performer of the week. It closed 7.8% higher at 5770.35 on a weekly basis. Hindalco was the outperformer among metal stocks as it rose 13.5% to close at 444.8 for the week. Other metal stocks that gained in double digits were National Aluminium (13.4%), Vedanta (12.7%), SAIL (12.3%) and Tata Steel (11.9%).
Metal and Steel shares rallied as the companies reported strong quarterly results and improving demand. Reports about higher consumption of steel in the country during the year also helped the shares to gain momentum. In addition, China is also expected to impose an export ban on steel products, boosting Investors optimism for the sector to perform well in the coming months.
The other index which did well in the week was the technology index. Coforge (8.4%), Oracle Financial Services (7.6%), Larsen & Toubro Infotech (7.4%) and Tech Mahindra (7%) jumped after these companies reported robust results and their net profit rose significantly for the quarter ended June.
The Nifty Pharma index was volatile during the week as Dr Reddy’s plunged 13.1% after it reported lower-than-expected results. Separately, Sun Pharma reported strong results on Friday and its shares rose 11.5% for the week to end at Rs 774. The company posted a net profit of Rs 1444 crore for the quarter, compared with a loss of Rs 1655 crore.
Globally, the Federal Reserve maintained its dovish stance on interest rate, though the US economy showed signs of optimism. Meanwhile, investors did not have a clear answer to the Fed’s plan on tapering its massive bond purchase. These developments supported the gold prices and it was set for weekly gains in over two months.
US stock indices closed lower for the week but gained on a monthly basis. For the month, the Dow rose 1.3%, the S&P 500 gained 2.3%, and the Nasdaq advanced 1.2%.
In Asia, China’s regulatory authority came down heavily on technology companies for their anti-competitive practices spooking investors, dragging the Chinese equities lower. Japanese index Nikkei close lower on Friday due to concerns over rising coronavirus.
Crude oil price was trading higher and it was headed for a second weekly gain on strong demand outlook.