Benchmarks indices end with minor gains; Sensex rises 113 points & Nifty 50 ends at 11,897
Domestic equity barometers ended with decent gains after see-saw trade on Tuesday, October 20, 2020, amid weak global cues. The S&P BSE Sensex rose 112.77 points or 0.28 per cent to 40,544.37. The Nifty 50 index added 23.75 points or 0.2 per cent to close at 11,896.80. Similarly, Nifty Bank gained 45.05 points or 0.19 per cent to settle at 24,311.80.
The broader market at BSE also climbed outperforming the Sensex. The BSE Mid-Cap index surged 0.47 per cent and the BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.30 per cent.
The market breadth was almost even. On the BSE, 1376 shares rose and 1309 shares fell. Similarly, 25 shares gained on the Nifty 50 and 24 declined, while 1 remained unchanged. The major gainers were HCL Tech (up 4.29 per cent), Tech Mahindra (up 3.17 per cent), Asian Paint (up 2.94 per cent), Bharti Airtel (2 per cent) and HDFC Bank (up 1.75 per cent). The top losers were Britannia (down 5.82 per cent), ONGC (down 2.60 per cent), GAIL (down 2.29 per cent), IOC (down 2.15 per cent) and UPL (down 1.84 per cent).
COVID-19 Update
India's active cases have fallen below 8 lakh after six weeks and continue to decline further. The Health Ministry said 22 states and Union Territories have less than 20,000 active cases. Only three are reporting more than 50,000 active caseloads. India reported 7,48,538 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 1,15,197 deaths while 67,33,328 patients have been discharged, data showed.
Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide were at 4,03,44,310 with 11,17,539 deaths, data showed.
Proposal of US$1.8 trillion package in the US
US President Donald Trump has proposed a US$1.8 trillion package and indicated he would go higher, while Democrats in the House of Representatives have approved a US$2.2 trillion measure. However, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has repeatedly signalled he would not support a massive package. A National Association of Home Builders survey showed record optimism in the industry.