MUMBAI, Feb 18: Indian equity markets extended gains for the third consecutive session on Wednesday, driven by last-hour buying in bank, metal, and FMCG shares.
The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 283.29 points, or 0.34%, to close at 83,734.25, touching an intraday high of 83,770.05. The 50-share NSE Nifty gained 93.95 points, or 0.37%, ending at 25,819.35.
Among Sensex constituents, top gainers included Tata Steel, ITC, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Hindustan Unilever, and SBI, while laggards included Infosys, Tech Mahindra, HCL Technologies, Adani Ports, TCS, Maruti Suzuki, and Asian Paints.
IT stocks underperformed due to concerns over AI-driven disruption and margin pressures, whereas banking and financial shares remained resilient on stable asset-quality expectations. Selective buying in FMCG stocks also contributed to overall market strength.
Sectorally, PSU Bank rose 1.41%, Metal 1.24%, FMCG 1.16%, Capital Goods 0.89%, and Industrials 0.80%, while IT and Services ended in the red.
The BSE Smallcap Select Index gained 1.02%, and the Midcap Select Index rose 0.40%. Notably, ITC, Godfrey Phillips, and VST Industries surged around 20% following reports of price hikes to offset recent excise duty increases, and Larsen & Toubro advanced over 1% after announcing a partnership with Nvidia to build India’s largest gigawatt-scale AI factory.
Foreign institutional investors purchased equities worth Rs 995.21 crore, while domestic institutional investors added Rs187.04 crore. Analysts noted that easing geopolitical tensions, positive domestic sectoral cues, and FII inflows supported the market, while global cues remained broadly positive, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 closing 1% higher and European markets trading higher in mid-session deals.
Brent crude rose 0.33% to $67.64 per barrel. Overall, the market demonstrated a gradual recovery amid mixed sectoral trends and supportive domestic and global factors. (PTI)
