The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Monday (December 25) will remain shut on account of of Christmas. No trading in equities, equity derivatives, interest rate derivatives and currency derivatives will also take place on Monday, while securities lending and borrowing will also not occur. On the other hand, the wholesale commodity markets, including metal and bullion, will also remain closed.
In the previous session on Friday (December 22), the BSE Sensex jumped over 200 points to settle at 71,106.96, while the NSE Nifty50 gained over 90 points to close trading at 21,349.40, amid buying across the sectors, barring banks. After a tepid beginning, the benchmarks went higher with the Nifty inching closer to 21,400 points. However, selling in the second half erased all the gains to turn negative but final-hour buying helped indices close near the day’s high.
Except for the bank, all sectoral indices ended in the green with auto, capital goods, healthcare, oil and gas up 1 percent each, while Information Technology, metal and realty were up 2 percent each.
In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index gained 0.7 per cent, while the Smallcap index went up by 1 per cent.
Meanwhile, the rupee on Friday gained 12 paise to settle at 83.15 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, amidst a weak American currency and positive domestic equity market sentiment. Forex traders noted that the Indian currency, however, remained under pressure owing to a continuous upward movement in the crude oil prices, triggered by evolving geopolitical situations and outflow of foreign funds.
The domestic currency touched 83.25 against the greenback in morning trade and traded in the range of 83.11 to 83.27 against the dollar, before settling at 83.15 (provisional). On Thursday, the Indian rupee settled at 83.27 against the American dollar.
Global oil price benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.97 per cent to $80.16 per barrel. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the equity market on Thursday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,636.19 crore, according to exchange data.