New Delhi: Sensex surged over 1,200 points to close above 75,000 in the late session on Wednesday, as hopes for resolution of the West Asia conflict rose.As diplomatic initiatives to end the war between the US-Israel and Iran gained momentum, markets around the world rallied, with crude oil prices falling and precious metals rising. Selling by foreign funds in domestic equities also slowed down due to global bullish sentiment, leading the Sensex to rise 1,205 points (1.6%) to 75,273 points on strong domestic buying. On NSE, Nifty closed at 23,306 points, up 394 points (1.7%).
According to official data, the day’s gains added Rs 8.2 lakh crore to investors’ wealth and the market capitalization of BSE now stands at Rs 431 lakh crore.According to Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments, the market maintained the previous day’s momentum as global risk sentiment improved and peace hopes emerged on the radar. “Despite mixed geopolitical commentary, crude oil prices fell below $100 a barrel on possible diplomatic progress between the US and Iran, which the market welcomed. Early signs of normalization in maritime movement through the Strait of Hormuz are likely to further support investor confidence, although it is too early to comment.“Despite the slow decline of US markets last night, global markets remained bullish on Wednesday. Across Asia, the Nikkei in Japan closed up nearly 3%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong was up 1.1% and the Shanghai Stock Exchange was up 1.3%. In Europe, the FTSE in the UK was up 1.5% in late trading while the DAX in Germany was up 1.6%. In early trading in the US, the Dow Jones and S&P indexes were up about 1% while the Nasdaq Composite was up 1.3%. And in Brazil, the iBovespa was up 2% in early trading.The Sensex rose despite net selling of Rs 1,805 crore by foreign funds, the lowest single-session figure since the war began. According to BSE data, domestic investors were net buyers of Rs 5,430 crore during the day.
