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Sensex, Nifty Jump Over 3%, Set For Best Month Since 2009
30 Apr 2020, 12:54 PM IST 
BSE Sensex Today: RIL, HDFC Bank and Infy contributed over 350 points to the index
- At 12:23 pm, the Sensex traded 1,159.69 points - or 3.54 per cent - higher at 33,879.85 while the Nifty was up 316.95 points - or 3.32 per cent - at 9,870.30. Gains across sectors - led by financial, auto and metal stocks supported the markets.
- In the 50-scrip Nifty basket, 46 stocks traded higher at the time. Top percentage gainers were Tata Motors, Hero MotoCorp, Hindalco, Vedanta and Maruti Suzuki India, trading higher between 5.84 per cent and 12.92 per cent each.
- Reliance Industries (up 4.75 per cent), HDFC Bank (4.12 per cent) and Infosys (5.19 per cent) together accounted for a gain of more than 450 points in Sensex.
- Reliance Industries shares rose as much as 4.79 per cent to Rs 1,494.50 apiece on the BSE, ahead of the release of financial results for the January-March period by the conglomerate. At its meeting later in the day, the company's board will also consider its first rights issue in almost 30 years in another attempt to slash its debt.
- Market breadth was highly positive with an advance-decline ratio of almost 3:1, as 1,254 stocks on the NSE traded higher against 467 that moved lower. On the BSE, 1,460 stocks advanced while 736 declined.
- Analysts also awaited more financial results from large caps for near-time direction. Tech Mahindra and Hindustan Unilever will also report their earnings on Thursday. The markets will remain closed on Friday for Maharashtra Day holiday.
- Equities elsewhere in Asia jumped to multi-week highs, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares excluding Japan rising 0.8 per cent to its highest level recorded since mid-March. Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark index, returning from a holiday the previous day, jumped 2.5 per cent to a seven-week high.
- Asian stocks followed strong moves in US markets overnight, where shares rallied after Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious disease official, said Gilead's antiviral remdesivir will become the standard of care for COVID-19 after early results from a trial seemed to show it helped speed recovery. The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite indices ended 2.66 per cent, 2.21 per cent and 3.57 per cent higher respectively.
- The Federal Reserve policymakers left interest rates near zero after a two-day meeting, and repeated a vow to do what it takes to shore up the economy, saying the ongoing coronavirus pandemic will “weigh heavily” on the near-term outlook and poses “considerable risks” for the medium term. US futures gave up early gains to turn flat, indicating a lacklustre start on Thursday.
- Investors around the globe have been excited by the prospect of a COVID-19 treatment because it may help countries emerge from lockdowns - even though investors' hopes don't seem to take into account regulatory and distribution difficulties should a treatment be found.
