Sensex climbs over 127 points in early trade

Equity benchmark Sensex surged over 127 points in opening trade on Thursday, March 31, 2022, tracking gains in index majors HDFC, Bajaj Finance and ICICI Bank amid a sharp fall in the global oil prices after the US indicated that it is planning a massive release of crude.

Renewed foreign capital inflows also supported the domestic equities, traders said.

The BSE barometer was trading 127.38 points higher at 58,811.37. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty gained 47.1 points to 17,545.35.

Among the 30-share pack, M&M, HDFC, Bajaj Finance, Axis Bank, Asian Paints, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ITC, HUL, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank were the major gainers in early trade.

In contrast, Infosys, Wipro, PowerGrid and Reliance Industries Limited were among the laggards.

In the previous trade, the 30-share BSE barometer index surged 740.34 points or 1.28 per cent to settle at 58,683.99. Similarly, the NSE Nifty climbed 172.95 points or 1 per cent to settle at 17,498.25.

‘Two positives’

“Hopes of de-escalation in the war have proved to be short-lived and the uncertainties associated with the war continues. From the market perspective, there are two positives that may support the market.

“One, the sharp decline in dollar index from above 99 to 97.7 is positive for equity markets globally. Two, FPIs turning buyers with a good buy figure of Rs 1357 crore along with DII buying will impart resilience to the market,” V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Seoul, Shanghai, Tokyo and Hong Kong were trading lower during mid-session deals.

Stock exchanges in the US ended on a negative note in the overnight session.

According to reports, the U.S. administration is mulling a massive release of crude from its emergency reserves to fight inflation and supply shortages. It is likely to release up to 180 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves in the coming months. Global crude prices have surged since Russia invaded Ukraine last month.

The US administration may announce the decision in this regard on Thursday.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude tumbled 4.54 per cent to USD 108.30 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were buyers as they bought shares worth ₹1,357.47 crore on Wednesday, according to stock exchange data.