India Sensex Index Completes Longest Run of Gains Since October

(Bloomberg) -- India’s stock benchmark rose, after seesawing for a large part of the session as investors weighed the risk of stricter social restrictions to rein in coronavirus cases against the prospect of an improvement in company earnings.

The S&P BSE Sensex increased 0.5% to 48,437.78 in Mumbai, completing a 10th consecutive session of gains for the longest streak for the gauge since mid-October. The NSE Nifty 50 Index advanced by a similar magnitude. Both measures climbed to fresh records.

While the promise of vaccines quelling the coronavirus pandemic has helped India’s equity indexes touch successive new highs, renewed lockdowns from Australia to the U.K. have given some investors pause. The quarterly earnings season beginning this week may provide guidance from companies for the months ahead.

“There is a short pause but it continues to remain a ‘buy on dips’ market for investors,” said Gaurav Garg, head of research at Indore-based CapitalVia Global Research Ltd. “With technology demand staying strong, we remain optimistic about earnings for the entire technology pack.”

Asia’s largest software exporter, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd., is scheduled to announce results on Friday.

The rupee weakened 0.2% to 73.18 per U.S. dollar, while the yield on 10-year government bond was steady at 5.82%.

The Numbers

• Thirteen of 19 sector indexes compiled by BSE Ltd. rose, led by a gauge of lenders
• Housing Development Finance Corp. contributed the most to the Sensex advance, increasing 2.8%, while Axis Bank Ltd. had the largest gain, rising 6.3%

Market-related stories

• World’s Top Sugar Trader Expects Two Years of Shortages Ahead
• Ultra-Low Interest Rates Here to Stay: 2021 Central Bank Guide
• World’s Worst Internet Shutdowns Cost India $2.8 Billion in 2020
• Big Drop in Indian Corporate Bond Yields Spurs Debt Binge: Chart

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.