Financials lead rebound in Indian shares ahead of US election
Updates to close
By Bharath Rajeswaran
Nov 5 (Reuters) - Indian shares reversed losses to end higher on Tuesday as investors sought safety in heavyweight financials that are considered to have cheaper valuations, ahead of the tightly-fought U.S. presidential election.
The NSE Nifty 50 .NSEI rose 0.91% to 24,213.3, while BSE Sensex .BSESN gained 0.88% to 79,476.63.
The benchmarks fellabout 0.6% each during the session, before reversing course in the final two hours.
Slowing corporate earnings and record monthly foreign outflows have weighed on domestic equities over the last five weeks, with the Nifty 50 dropping about 8% from record highs hit on Sept. 27.
On Tuesday, financials .NIFTYFIN rose about 2%, with top private lenderHDFC Bank HDBK.NS, the heaviest stock in the Nifty and Sensex,advancing 2.6%.
"The buying in financials which lifted markets higher in the session is due to a strategy adopted by investors to park their funds in segments with valuation comfort for safety ahead of key events like the U.S. presidential election," said Aishvarya Dadheech, chief investment officer at Fident Asset Management.
Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump remain virtually tied in opinion polls ahead of Tuesday's U.S. election. The winner will likely not be known for days after voting ends.
A Trump win could lead to lower corporate tax rates in the U.S., which is expected to boost spending and, in turn, benefit several equity sectors in India, according to analysts. A Harrisvictory, meanwhile, is seen as a sign of policy continuity, a neutral-to-mildly-positive outcome for Indian stocks, they said.
Eleven of the 13 major sectors advanced on the day. The broader, more domestically focused small- .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 gained about 0.5% each. .
The metalsindex .NIFTYMET rose 2.8%, leading sectoral gains, aidedby a subdued U.S. dollar and on expectations of demand recovery in top consumer China.
Improving Chinese demand is a positive for metal prices and, in turn, for global metal firms. MET/L
($1 = 84.1360 Indian rupees)
Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy, Janane Venkatraman and Sonia Cheema
Latest News
Disclaimer: The XM Group entities provide execution-only service and access to our Online Trading Facility, permitting a person to view and/or use the content available on or via the website, is not intended to change or expand on this, nor does it change or expand on this. Such access and use are always subject to: (i) Terms and Conditions; (ii) Risk Warnings; and (iii) Full Disclaimer. Such content is therefore provided as no more than general information. Particularly, please be aware that the contents of our Online Trading Facility are neither a solicitation, nor an offer to enter any transactions on the financial markets. Trading on any financial market involves a significant level of risk to your capital.
All material published on our Online Trading Facility is intended for educational/informational purposes only, and does not contain – nor should it be considered as containing – financial, investment tax or trading advice and recommendations; or a record of our trading prices; or an offer of, or solicitation for, a transaction in any financial instruments; or unsolicited financial promotions to you.
Any third-party content, as well as content prepared by XM, such as: opinions, news, research, analyses, prices and other information or links to third-party sites contained on this website are provided on an “as-is” basis, as general market commentary, and do not constitute investment advice. To the extent that any content is construed as investment research, you must note and accept that the content was not intended to and has not been prepared in accordance with legal requirements designed to promote the independence of investment research and as such, it would be considered as marketing communication under the relevant laws and regulations. Please ensure that you have read and understood our Notification on Non-Independent Investment. Research and Risk Warning concerning the foregoing information, which can be accessed here.
