Markets end special trading session with gains

Equity benchmark indices closed the special trading session on a firm note on Saturday, extending their rally to the third day running amid fresh foreign fund inflows

New Delhi: Equity benchmark indices closed the special trading session on a firm note on Saturday, extending their rally to a third consecutive day amid fresh foreign fund inflows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 88.91 points, or 0.12%, to close at 74,005.94, after reaching a session high of 74,162.76. The NSE Nifty advanced 35.90 points, or 0.16%, to 22,502.

The NSE and BSE conducted the special trading session on May 18 to test their preparedness for major disruptions, involving an intra-day switch from the Primary Site (PR) to the Disaster Recovery (DR) site.

The market capitalization of BSE-listed companies hit an all-time high of Rs 4,12,36,791.05 crore during this session.

Among the Sensex gainers were Nestle, Power Grid, Tata Motors, Tata Consultancy Services, HCL Technologies, Hindustan Unilever, and State Bank of India. JSW Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, and Kotak Mahindra Bank were among the laggards.

Wall Street ended mostly higher on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average surpassing 40,000 for the first time, driven by optimism from a softer-than-expected April inflation report, which increased expectations of a September rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) became net buyers on Friday, purchasing equities worth Rs 1,616.79 crore.

VK Vijayakumar of Geojit Financial Services highlighted that the Dow's record close would provide global support for equity markets, while the shift of FIIs to buying alleviated market pressure.

On Friday, the BSE benchmark rose by 253.31 points, or 0.34%, to 73,917.03, and the NSE Nifty increased by 62.25 points, or 0.28%, to 22,466.10. The BSE smallcap index climbed 0.77% and the midcap index advanced 0.48%.

For the week, the BSE benchmark gained 1,341.47 points, or 1.84%, and the Nifty rose by 446.8 points, or 2%.

The special trading sessions aim to ensure business continuity in case of major disruptions at the primary trading sites.