Sensex, Nifty close 1 percent higher on rise in IT, financial stocks

Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmarks closed nearly 1% higher on Friday, extending their gains on strong buying in information technology (IT), financial stocks, and realty stocks.
The Nifty closed 244.10 points higher, or 1.02%, at 24,206.90. Similarly, the Sensex gained 827.57 points, or 1.08%, to close at 77,569.39.
The rally was led by IT and realty stocks, with the Nifty IT index rising nearly 2% to become the top-performing sector. Financial stocks also witnessed massive buying, further supporting the market rally.
The Nifty Realty index jumped over 3%, followed by the Nifty PSU Bank, which rose 3%.
The Nifty Chemicals, Nifty Metal, Nifty Cement, and Nifty Oil & Gas indices rose up to 1.66%.
Meanwhile, the Nifty FMCG was the only major sectoral index to close slightly lower, falling 0.08%.

According to market experts, positive business updates from banks and a positive outlook for the IT sector, stable earnings estimates, a potential recovery in global technology spending, and opportunities offered by artificial intelligence (AI) have boosted investor confidence at the start of the June quarter earnings season.

Experts said, “If first-quarter earnings beat expectations, concerns about future earnings growth could ease, supporting the market’s ongoing uptrend. The rally has also gained momentum, with sectors like real estate and metals seeing strong participation.”
Experts further said that the decline in crude oil prices and the recovery in global technology stocks have improved sentiment towards Indian equities, helping to revive foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows.

International benchmark Brent crude fell more than 1 percent to $75.41 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 1.27 percent to $71.16 a barrel.