Stock Market Today: Nifty, Sensex End Eventful Week At Fresh Records; RIL, HDFC Bank Rise

• The local currency weakened 2 paise to close at 83.56 against the U.S dollar.

• It closed at 83.54 on Thursday.

Source: Bloomberg

Indian benchmark indices ended at fresh closing high in the last session of the eventful week, tracking sharp gains in shares of HDFC Bank Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd.

During the last leg of the trade, the NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.39% to 23,490.05 the highest level since the index's inception on April 22, 1996.

The Sensex rose 0.35% to 77,081.30, the highest closing level so far. However, the index didn't record a fresh life-time high like its peer.

The benchmarks rose for second week in a row. The NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.75% and the S&P BSE Sensex rose 0.39% this week.

HDFC Bank Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., Titan Co., and Axis Bank Ltd. added to the benchmark indices.

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd., Infosys Ltd., State Bank of India, and HCL Technologies Ltd. weighed on the benchmark index.

This week, 10 sectors advanced, and two declined out of 12 on NSE. The NSE Nifty Realty turned out to be the best performing sector, while the NSE Nifty IT emerged as the top loser.

Broader indices outperformed. S&P BSE Midcap ended 1.18% higher and the S&P BSE Smallcap rose 1.03%.

Broader indices outperformed. S&P BSE Midcap ended 1.18% higher and the S&P BSE Smallcap rose 1.03%.

Market breadth was skewed in the favour of buyers. As many as 2,245 stocks rose, 1,622 fell, and 113 remained unchanged on the BSE.

• Minda Corp Ltd. has signed a joint venture agreement with HSIN Chong Machinery works for manufacturing automotive sunroof solutions for passenger cars.

• The 50-50 JV is to be operational through incorporation of new JV entity.

Source: Exchange filing

• EIH Associated Hotels's board recommended bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1.

Source: Exchange filing

The NSE Nifty 50 index rose 0.39% to 23,490.05, the highest level since the index's inception. It was trading 0.37% higher at 23,483.80 as of 3:05 as HDFC Bank Ltd., and Reliance Industries Ltd.

The India Volatility Index declined 6.17% to 12.65, the lowest level since April 30.

• Outstanding issues to seal the India-UK Free Trade Agreement is to be resolved once the general elections in UK are over.

Source: Trade Briefing, Ministry of Commerce and Industry

Shares of Prestige Estates Projects Ltd. surged on Friday after CLSA raised its target price, citing substantial operating cash flow supporting capex and project pipeline growth.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. has crossed Tata Motors Ltd.'s market cap today. Market-cap of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. was at Rs 3.6 lakh crore as of 1:50 p.m., compared to Rs 3.3 lakh crore market cap of Tata Motors Ltd.

The stock jumped in the eighth session today and rose as much as 5.56% to hit its lifetime high of Rs 10,959. It has risen 69.5% year to date and 154% in the twelve months.

The benchmark equity indices traded with minor gains through midday on Friday as shares of financial services stocks led the gains, while those IT companies limited the upside. At 11:59 a.m., the NSE Nifty 50 was trading 46.80 points or 0.20% higher at 23,445.70, while the S&P BSE Sensex was 103.02 points or 0.13% up at 76,913.92.

In the last three–four sessions, the markets have been opening positively, but they have not been able to sustain the high levels, according to Kush Bohra, founder of kushbohra.com. He advises investors to be a little cautious and buy on dips to 23,000–22,800 of the Nifty.

Shares of HDFC Bank Ltd., Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone Ltd. and Shriram Finance Ltd. contributed the most to the gains in the Nifty.

Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., HCL Technologies Ltd., Infosys Ltd., Larsen & Toubro Ltd. and Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. dragged the index.

Except the Nifty IT, all sectoral indices on the NSE rose. The Nifty Auto and Metal were the top gainers.

The broader indices outperformed the benchmarks as the BSE MidCap rose 0.85% and the SmallCap was 1.05% higher.

Eighteen out of the 20 sectoral indices on the BSE advanced, with Industrials and Capital Goods rising the most.

The market breadth was skewed in favour of the buyers as 2,342 stocks rose, 1,360 declined and 138 remained unchanged on the BSE.

Shares of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd. rose 5.89% to Rs 3,589.70, the highest level since listing on Oct 12, 2020. It was trading 5.36% higher at Rs 3,571.65 as of 1:09 p.m. as compared to 0.22% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

• Hyundai India to file IPO papers with SEBI today.

• On offer are 142 million shares, or 17.5% of company

• Citi, HSBC, Kotak, Morgan Stanley are merchant bankers

Source: People In The Know To NDTV Profit

Shares of GMR Airports Infrastructure Ltd. rose 3.07% to Rs 94.55, the highest level since Aug 21, 2006. It was trading 2.45% higher at Rs 93.98 as of 12:52 p.m., as compared to 0.20% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

• The Bank of Japan kept its benchmark rate unchanged at 0.00-0.1% on Friday.

• The central bank kept its bond-buying program unchanged.

• The Japanese central bank may possibly raise the benchmark overnight call rate in July, depending on data, Governor Kazuo Ueda said.

Source: Bloomberg

• Zydus Lifesciences Ltd. has received a US Food and Drug Administration's tentative nod for Azilsartan Medoxomil and Chlorthalidone tablets.

• Alert: Azilsartan Medoxomil and Chlorthalidone are used in treatment of high blood pressure.

Source: Exchange filing

• Bajaj Finance Housing Ltd. filed draft papers with SEBI for Rs 7,000 crore IPO.

Source: SEBI

• WPI inflation rose to 2.61% on the year in May from 1.26% in April

• WPI food inflation rose to 7.40% on year in May from 5.52% in April

• Fuel and power inflation rose to 1.35% on year in May from 1.38% in April

• Manufactured products inflation rose to 0.78% on year in May from -0.42% in April

• WPI core inflation rose 0.4% on the year in May from -0.7% in April

Source: Ministry of Commerce

• Jindal Stainless Ltd. has bought remaining 46% stake in Chromeni Steels for Rs 278 crore.

Source: Exchange filing

Shares of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. rose 2.21% to Rs 2,925.00, the highest level since its listing on Jan 3, 1996. It was trading 2.03% higher at Rs 2,919.75 as of 11:29 a.m., as compared to 0.15% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

Shares of Suven Pharmaceutical Ltd. gained 5% on Friday after it acquired a 100% stake in contract development and manufacturing firm Sapala Organics Pvt.

Shares of the company rose over 5% to trade at Rs 705.00 apiece, before paring gains to trade 3.47% higher at Rs 691.10 apiece as of 10:02 a.m. This compares to a 0.07% rise in the NSE Nifty 50.

The stock has fallen 4.32% year-to-date and 42.35% in the last 12 months. Total traded volume so far today stood at 1.63 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 64.86%.

One analyst tracking the company maintains a 'buy' rating, according to Bloomberg data. The average of 12-month analysts' price targets implies a potential upside of 15.8%.

• Lupin Ltd. has announced a closure of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's inspection at injectable facility with zero 483 observations.

Source: Exchange filing

The NSE Nifty Midcap 150 rose 0.73% to 20,629.40, the highest level since its incorporation on April 1, 2016. It was trading 0.65% at 20,612.35 as of 11:03 a.m., as compared to 0.16% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The NSE Nifty Smallcap 100 rose 0.83% to 18,057.10, the highest level since its incorporation on March 30, 2011. It was trading 0.68% higher at 18,030.35 as of 11:05 a.m. as compared to 0.20% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The NSE Nifty Auto rose 0.42% to 25,500.85, the highest level since its inception on July 12, 2011. It was trading 0.31% higher at 25,471.75 as of 10:56 a.m., as compared to 0.12% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The NSE Nifty Pharma rose 0.40% to 19,918.65, the highest level since July 1, 2005. It was trading 0.31% higher at 19,900.40 as of 10:58 a.m., as compared to 0.19% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The India Volatility Index declined 3.71% to 12.98, the lowest level since May 2. The index was trading 3.43% down at 13.02 as of 10:50 a.m., as compared to 0.23% advance in the NSE Nifty Index.

• FSN E-Commerce Ventures Ltd. expects 2000 bps EBITDA margin improvement by FY26-end vs FY24

• It aims mid-term GMV of 9 times of FY24

• The company's mid-term EBITDA margin in the range of 3-5%

Source: Exchange filing

Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd. rose nearly 2% on Friday after its board approved to raise Rs 2,458 crore by issuing preferential shares.

The telecom giant plans to issue 166 crore shares with a face value of Rs 10 each on preferential basis in one or more tranches to Nokia Solutions Ltd., and Ericsson India Ltd. to pay off part of the outstanding dues. Both are Vodafone Idea's long-term network equipment supplier.

Vodafone Idea will issue 102.7 crore shares at an issue price of Rs 14.80 per share to Nokia Solutions, aggregating up to Rs 1,520 crore. To Ericsson India, it will allot 63.37 crore shares at the same issue price, which totals to Rs 938 crore, according to an exchange filing.

Shares of Vodafone Idea Ltd. rose 1.93% to Rs 16.38, the highest level since Jun 3. It was trading 0.44% higher at Rs 16.14 as of 10:23 a.m., as compared to 0.23% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The scrip gained 104.30% in 12 months, and 1% on year to date basis. Total traded volume on NSE so far in the day stood at 0.27 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 60.73.

Out of 19 analysts tracking the company, two maintain a 'buy' rating, six recommend a 'hold,' and 11 suggest 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies a downside of 31.8%.

Shares of Shriram Finance Ltd. rose 2.34% to Rs 2,747.00, the highest level since Dec 11, 1996. It was trading 1.98% higher as of 09:46 a.m., as compared to 0.22% decline in the NSE Nifty 50 index.

The scrip gained 94.45% in 12 months, and risen 33.29% on year to date basis. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 3.0 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 68.14.

Shares of Ambuja Cements Ltd. rose to the highest level since its listing on Friday after the company said it'll acquire Penna Cement Industries Ltd..

The cement-maker has entered into an binding agreement to acquire Penna Cement's 100% stake for Rs 10,422 crore. The acquisition process will likely conclude within three-four months, according to an exchange filing.

India's benchmark indices opened higher on Friday despite a decline in Asian peers as heavyweight HDFC Bank Ltd., Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., and Larsen & Toubro Ltd. rose.

As of 09:17 a.m., the NSE Nifty 50 index was 25.05 points or 0.11% higher at 23,423.95, and the S&P BSE Sensex was 75.50 points or 0.1% higher at 76,886.40.

"For trend following traders currently, 23,300/76,700 would act as a sacrosanct support zone. Above that, the positive formation is likely to continue. On the higher side, we can expect 23,500-23,600/77,000-77,300 in the near future," said Shrikant Chouhan, head, equity research, Kotak Securities.

On the other hand, if the index moves below 23,300/76,700, a quick intraday correction cannot be ruled out and it can retest 23,200-23,100/76,400-76,200 levels. Reduce long positions around 23600 levels whereas buying is advisable only on dips around 23,200-23,100 levels, he added.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., HDFC Bank Ltd., Hindustan Unilever Ltd., Shriram Finance Ltd., and Bajaj Finance Ltd. added to the benchmark indices.

ICICI Bank Ltd., Reliance Industries Ltd., Infosys Ltd., NTPC Ltd., and Bajaj Auto Ltd. weighed on the index.

On NSE, nine sectors advanced, three declined out of 12. The NSE Nifty Realty rose the most, and the NSE Nifty IT declined the most.

Broader markets rose in line with the benchmarks. The S&P BSE Midcap and smallcap gained 0.23% and 0.36%, respectively.

On BSE, 10 sectors advanced, and 10 declined out of 20. The S&P BSE Realty rose the most, while the S&P BSE IT declined the most in early trade.

Market breadth was skewed in favour of buyers. Around 1,610 stocks rose, 1,277 stocks declined, and 126 stocks remained unchanged on BSE.

• Suzlon Energy Ltd.'s Chairman is evaluating suggestions on corporate governance after Marc Desaedeleer's resignation

• The audit Committee has appointed Khaitan & Co to conduct a review on corporate governance

• Alert: Desaedeleer had resigned as independent director citing poor corporate governance

Source: Exchange filing

• Kotak Institutional has kept a 'Buy' on Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones Ltd.

• The price target is raised to Rs 1,650, which implied a17.5% upside.

• Volumes grew 14% in April-May'24 vs low-to-mid single-digit growth in market

• The brokerage expects Adani Ports & SEZ to outperformance to continue for long with boost to margins

• Kotak Institutional Equities sees a potential of growing existing capacity by 5-6X over time

• Increase volume estimates by 5-6% for FY2026 and FY2027

The NSE Nifty 50 was trading 66.05 points or 0.28% higher at 23,464.95, and the S&P BSE Sensex was 99.67 points or 0.13% higher at 76,910.57.

• Sees residential real estate sector continues to scale at new peaks

• All-India residential sales cross 1 billion sq ft mark in sales growing 20% in FY24

• Among listed players- Godrej, Prestige, Signature and Brigade reported strong pre-sales growth

• Demand in Q4FY24 led by MMR, Bengaluru and Hyderabad

• Overall inventory across the country reduced 6% YoY to 1.37 bn sq. ft

• Expect the sales momentum to continue unabated in FY2025E

• Valuations for residential real estate stocks stand at 7-12X adjusted EV/EBITDA

• Top picks- DLF, Brigade and Signature Global

• The yield on the 10-year bond opened flat at 6.98%.

• It closed at 6.99% on Thursday.

Source: Cogencis

• The local currency opened flat at 83.54 against the US dollar.

• It closed at 83.54 on Thursday.

Source: Bloomberg

• Cut-off period spans from Jan 1, 2024, to June 30, 2024

• Announcement expected in the first week of July

• Categorization will take effect from Aug 1, 2024

• Categorization doesn’t lead to incremental inflows or outflow

• Large-cap cut-off to be approximately Rs. 83,000 crores (compared to Rs. 67,000 crores as of Dec 2023)

• Mid-cap threshold to hover around Rs. 27,700 crores (compared to Rs. 22,000 crores as of Dec 2023)

• Potential large cap entrants are:

Hero MotoCorp Ltd., Zydus Lifesciences Ltd., JSW Energy Ltd., NHPC Ltd., Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd., Samvardhana Motherson International Ltd., and Bosch Ltd.

• Stocks which can move from large cap to midcap:

Berger Paints, SBI Cards, Marico, SRF ICICI Lombard, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co., Polycab India Ltd.

• Potential midcap entrants:

Housing and Urban Development Corp., IRB Infrastructure Developers Ltd., Bharat Dynamics Ltd., Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd., BSE Ltd., Global Health Ltd., Hitachi Energy India Ltd. NLCC India Ltd., Tata Investment Corp. Cochin Shipyard Ltd., National Aluminum Co, Hindustan Copper Ltd., Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd., ITI Ltd., Godrej Industries Ltd., Apar Industries Ltd., Blue Star Ltd., Bharti Hexacom Ltd., and Go Digit General Insurance Ltd.

• Stocks which can move from midcap to smallcap

Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd., IIFL Finance Ltd., Piramal Enterprises Ltd., Devyani International Ltd., Ramco Cements Ltd., Relaxo Footwears Ltd., Credit Access Grameen Ltd., Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd., Hatsun Agro Products Ltd., Sundaram Fasteners Ltd., SKF India Ltd., Timken India Ltd., Vedanta Ltd., Grindwell Norton Ltd., Bayer Corp Science Ltd., Narayan Hrudayalaya Ltd. Sun TV Network Ltd., Tata Chemicals Ltd., KPR Mills Ltd.

• U.S. Dollar Index at 105.21

• U.S. 10-year bond yield at 4.27%

• Brent crude down 0.42% at $82.40 per barrel

• Nymex crude down 0.53% at $78.20 per barrel 

• Bitcoin was up 0.20% at $66,808.31

• The GIFT Nifty was trading 9 points or 0.04% higher at 23,411.50 as of 07:58 a.m.

The Indian currency closed flat against the US dollar at 83.55.

• Nifty June Futures up by 0.18% to 23,399.25 at a premium of 0.35 points.

• Nifty June Futures open interest down by 2.86%.

• Nifty Bank June Futures up by 0.02% to 49,912.65 at a premium of 65.95 points.

• Nifty Bank June futures open interest down by 1.3%.

• Nifty Options June 20 Expiry: Maximum call open interest at 24,000 and maximum put open interest at 22,500.

• Bank Nifty Options June 19 Expiry: Maximum call open interest at 50,000 and maximum put open interest at 50,000.

• Securities in ban period: GMR Infra, Hindustan Copper, India Cements, SAIL, Sun TV Network.

• Price band revised from 10% to 5%: Marine Electricals, Accuracy Shipping, OM Infra.

• Ex/record Dividend: Sona BLW Precision Forgings, Bajaj Auto, BSE, Adani Energy Solutions, Adani Green Energy, Adani Power, Canara Bank, MM Forgings, L&T Technology Services, Bikaji Foods International, Xchanging Solutions, Elecon Engineering, VST Industries, Hindustan Unilever, Torrent Power, ACC, Adani Enterprises, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, Ambuja Cements, Adani Total Gas, Happiest Minds Technologies.

• Ex/record stock split: Kamdhenu Ventures (1:5)

• Moved into short-term framework: Associated Alcohols & Breweries, Dredging Corp., Elecon Engineering Co., Hindustan Construction Co., Reliance Power, and SEPC.

• Moved Out of short-term Framework: Allsec Technologies.

• Adani Green Energy: To meet analysts and investors on June 19.

• SIS: To meet analysts and investors on June 19.

• Kotak Mahindra Bank: To meet analysts and investors on June 19.

• LT Foods: To meet analysts and investors on June 20 and 21.

• Cochin Shipyard: To meet analysts and investors on June 20.

• Isgec Heavy Engineering: To meet analysts and investors on June 20.

• General Insurance Corp.: To meet analysts and investors on June 18, 19, 25, and 26.

• Subex: To meet analysts and investors on June 18–20.

• Computer Age Management Services: To meet analysts and investors on June 25.

• L&T Finance: BNP Paribas Financial Markets sold 5.78 crore shares (2.33%) at Rs 170.6 apiece, BC Investments Vi sold 1.03 crore shares (0.41%) at Rs 170.6 apiece, BC Asia Growth Investments sold 2 crore shares (0.8%) at Rs 170.6 apiece, Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore PTE bought 3.37 crore shares (1.36%) at Rs 170.6 apiece, and Larsen & Toubro bought 1.25 crore shares (0.5%) at Rs 170.6 apiece.

• Interglobe Aviation: Citigroup Global Markets Mauritius sold 5.21 lakh shares (0.13%) at Rs 4,300.4 apiece, and Societe Generale bought 5.21 lakh shares (0.13%) at Rs 4,300.4 apiece.

• Senco Gold: Saif Partners India IV sold 45.07 lakh shares (5.8%), while India Acorn Icav bought 6.33 lakh shares (0.81%), Apah Capital Master Fund bought 5.22 lakh shares (0.67%), and Motilal Oswal Equity Opportunities Fund Series bought 3.96 lakh shares (0.5%) at Rs 960 apiece.

• Indian Shelter Finance: Madison India Opportunities Trust Fund sold 11.35 lakh shares (1.06%) at 665.11 apiece.

• Dharmpur Sugar Mills: Goel Anil Kumar sold 5.97 lakh shares (0.89%) at Rs 247.9 apiece.

• Dwarkesh Sugar Industries: Goel Anil Kumar sold 12.9 lakh shares (0.68%) at Rs 76.66 apiece.

• OM Infra: Vidhul Gupta bought 5 lakh shares (0.51%) at Rs 171.14 apiece.

• Power Mech Projects: Power Mech Infra sold 1.08 lakh shares (0.72%), Aishwarya Kurra sold 0.81 lakh shares (0.54%), and Lakshmi Sajja sold 0.81 lakh shares (0.54%) at Rs 4754.6 apiece.

• Som Distilleries & Breweries: Promoter Deepak Arora bought 20,000 shares on June 12.

• Action Construction Equipment: Promoter Mona Agarwal sold 13 lakh shares, and promoter Sorab Agarwal sold 3 lakh shares on June 11.

• Cantabil Retail: Promoter Deepak Bansal bought 1 lakh shares on June 10.

• Wardwizard Innovations & Mobility: Promoter Wardwizard Solutions India Promoter Wardwizard Solutions India sold 67.12 lakh shares on June 10, 11.

• Ambuja Cements: The company will acquire a 100% stake in Penna Cement Industries at an enterprise value of Rs 10,422 crore.

• Vodafone Idea: The company board has approved raising Rs 2,458 crore through the issuance of shares on a preferential basis. The company will use the funds to clear part of its outstanding debt, expand its 4G coverage, and launch 5G services.

• Puravankara: The board approved in-principle approval for raising up to Rs 1,000 crore via QIP.

• Wipro: The company launched an on-premises GenAI solution in a pact with Hewlett-Packard Enterprise.

• Life Insurance Corp.: The company increased its stake in Dr Reddy’s Laboratories from 4.95% to 5.01%.

• Zaggle Prepaid Ocean Services: The company is in a pact with Skydo Technologies to facilitate cross-border payments for Zaggle corporate customers.

• Rites: The company and DMRC signed a MoU to explore consultancy, operations and management projects for the Metro Rail system.

• DCX Systems: The company received an order worth Rs 32 crore from domestic and overseas customers to supply cable and wire harness assemblies.

• Atul Auto: The company incorporated the unit Atu Lease for vehicle leasing.

• Asian Energy Services: The company received an LOA from Sun Petrochemicals for 3D seismic data acquisition and processing services for Sunpetro’s fields and blocks in Gujarat. The value of the LOA is Rs 37.71 crore, excluding GST.

• National Aluminium Co.: The company executed a mining lease deed with Odisha over an area of 698 hectares for bauxite mines in Koraput district. The mines have an annual production capacity of 3.5 million tonnes and have reserves estimated at 111 million tonnes, projecting a mine life of 32 years.

• Suven Pharmaceuticals: The company signed definitive agreements to acquire 100% of the equity shares in Sapala Organics. The company will initially acquire 67.5% through secondary transfers from Target’s existing shareholders and a balance stake in 2026–27.

• Havells: The company is to expand the manufacturing capacities of air conditioners at Ghiloth, Sricity, to 15 lakh units per year. The proposed investment for capacity enhancements at Ghiloth and Sricity plants is in the range of Rs 50–60 crore.

• SEPC: The company is to consider fundraising on June 19.

• Shipping Corp.: NITI Aayog gives in-principle approval for the formation of a wholly owned subsidiary in GIFT City.

• Cupid: The company received an initial order from Cipla Health to manufacture a range of male condoms under the Cipla brand. Cipla Health has committed to placing regular, sizeable orders for male condoms with the company in the coming quarters.

• Exxaro Tiles: The company will temporarily shut down unit 1 Padra plant for 4 weeks starting June 14 due to maintenance.

Most benchmarks in the Asia-Pacific were trading lower on Friday ahead of the outcome of the Bank of Japan's policy meet.

The Nikkei 225 was 121.52 points or 0.31% lower at 38,598.95, and the S&P ASX 200 was 27.20 points or 0.35% down at 7,722.50 as of 06:37 a.m. The Kospi was 11.32 points or 0.41% higher at 2,766.21.

The S&P 500 rose 0.23% and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.34%, respectively, as of Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.17%.

Brent crude was trading 0.81% lower at $82.08 a barrel. Gold rose 0.06% to $2,305.53 an ounce.

The GIFT Nifty was trading 19 points or 0.08% lower at 23,401.50 as of 06:39 a.m.

The Indian benchmark equity indices extended their rally for a third consecutive day on Thursday to close at their highest levels as macro data uplifted the sentiment. The NSE Nifty 50 closed 75.95 points or 0.33%, up at 23398.90, while the S&P BSE Sensex ended 204.33 points or 0.27%, higher at 76810.90.

Overseas investors turned net sellers on Thursday after a day of buying. Foreign portfolio investors offloaded stocks worth Rs 3,033 crore, while domestic institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 553.9 crore, according to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange.

The Indian currency closed flat against the US dollar at 83.55.