Market Wrap, Dec 4: NIFTY50 ends above 26,000, SENSEX rises 158 pts as IT stocks rally amid weak rupee; Tech Mahindra top gainer

The Indian stock market snapped its four-day losing streak and closed with gains on Thursday, December 4, after a volatile session led by a strong rally in IT stocks amid a weakening rupee. Investors remain cautious ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s December repo rate announcement slated for Friday.

The rupee slipped 28 paise to another record low of 90.43 against the US dollar. However, the domestic currency rebounded from its all-time low levels and appreciated by 19 paise to close at 89.96 against the US dollar amid softness in the US dollar index and on reports of the Reserve Bank of India's supposed intervention.

According to exchange data, on Wednesday, the foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹3,206.92 crore, while the domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities worth ₹4,730.41 crore on a net basis.

Globally, indices in Asia were trading mixed on Thursday, as weak economic data strengthened expectations the Federal Reserve may cut interest rates at its meeting next week.

South Korea's KOSPI slipped 0.19%, while Japan's Nikkei soared 1.98%, the Shanghai Composite fell 0.06%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed 0.51% higher.

On Wall Street, the main indices ended close to record highs, higher on Wednesday. Stocks broadly got a lift from easing Treasury yields in the bond market.

The S&P 500 advanced 0.3%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.86%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 0.17%.

Here are the key developments of Thursday's session that you need to know

As many as 3,214 stocks traded on the NSE on Thursday. Out of this, 1,381 advanced and 1,746 stocks declined, while 87 scrips remained unchanged.

This indicated that the market breadth was in favour of declines.

A total of 25 stocks hit their 52-week highs, while 208 stocks touched their one-year lows. Besides, 62 stocks hit their upper circuit limits, and 68 touched their lower circuit bands on Thursday.

The market capitalisation of NSE-listed firms stood at ₹467.61 lakh crore at the close of the session.

India VIX, the volatility gauge, stood at 10.82 levels, slumping 3.52%.

The broader markets underperformed the main equity indices as the Nifty Smallcap 100 index dropped 0.24% to close at 17,607.85, while the Nifty Midcap 100 index declined marginally by 0.03% to settle at 60,299.80.

Led by a strong rally in Coforge (2.83%), Mphasis (1.75%) and Persistent Systems (1.74%), the Nifty IT index took the lead among the sectoral gauges gainers’ list, rising 1.41%. Nifty Realty (0.54%), Nifty FMCG (0.47%), Nifty Auto (0.32%) and Nifty Pharma (0.22%) were the other winners.

However, Nifty Media (-1.45%), Nifty Consumer Durables (-0.62%), Nifty Oil and Gas (-0.05%) and Nifty Private Bank (-0.01%) were the only losers.

On the NIFTY50, 34 stocks ended in the green, while 16 declined on Thursday.

Tech Mahindra was the biggest contributing stock, gaining 1.51%, followed by HDFC Life Insurance (1.49%), TCS (1.48%), SBI Life Insurance (1.41%) and Bharat Electronics (1.25%).

On the flip side, IndiGo parent InterGlobe Aviation (-2.39%), Reliance Industries (-0.88%), Hindalco Industries (-0.65%), Maruti Suzuki (-0.64%), and Titan Company (-0.62%) were the top laggards on the 50-share index.