SENSEX crosses 81,000, NIFTY50 jumps 70 points; Grasim and Tata Consumer among top gainers

On Thursday, the Indian markets started the session on a positive note, with NIFTY50 and SENSEX trading in green. The broader markets also opened in positive territory. The India VIX declined by 0.38%, reaching around the 13.3 mark. The Nifty Bank outperforms by gaining over 0.60%.

US benchmark indexes ended higher after the minutes from the Federal Reserve's July meeting indicating the willingness of central bank officials to consider a rate cut. Now, all eyes and ears will be tuned to Jerome Powell's Jackson Hole speech on Friday.

Shares of One 97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, have surged to a fresh six-month high after Paytm agreed to sell the Entertainment Ticketing Business to Zomato for ₹2,048 Crore Cash. Paytm plans to concentrate on its core financial services.

FII and DII activity

On Wednesday, August 21, 2024, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹799.74 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth ₹3,097.45 crore.

Market indices

At 9:25 AM, the SENSEX traded 0.18% higher above the 81,000 level. The NIFTY50 traded up by 0.13% above the 24,800 mark. The Nifty Bank was also up by 0.30%, trading near the 50,800 level.

Broader indices

Looking at the broader indices, the Nifty Midcap 100 index was trading up by 0.35% above the 58,600 level, while the Nifty Smallcap was also trading up by 0.31%, near the 19,100 level. Market breadth remains strong as advancing stocks outnumber the declining stocks.

Sectoral performance

Within the sectoral landscape, Nifty FMCG (+0.58%), Nifty PSU Bank (+0.53%), and NIFTY Metal (+0.47%) were the top-performing sectors.

Top gainers and losers

In the NIFTY50 space, Grasim (+1.48%), Infosys (+1%), and IndusInd Bank (+0.69%) were among the top gainers. On the other hand, Power Grid (-1.43%), Shriram Finance (-1.05%), and Dr. Reddy (-1%) were among the top losers.

U.S. markets

US stocks ended higher on Wednesday, lifted by dovish Federal Reserve meeting minutes signifying willingness to consider a rate cut.

Commodities

A significant decline in crude oil prices halted on Thursday as a series of unfavourable economic reports from the two biggest economies in the world—China and the United States—were countered by expectations of a rate decrease by the Federal Reserve.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped $0.07, or 0.10%, reaching $71.86 per barrel.

Stocks in F&O Ban

Stocks that are banned for trading in the F&O segment on August 22, 2024, are Aarti Industries, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, Balrampur Chini Mills, Birlasoft, GNFC, Granules India, Hindustan Copper, India Cements, LIC Housing Finance, National Aluminium, Piramal Enterprises, and Sun TV.