Mumbai, June 20
The Indian stock markets bounced back on Friday after three straight sessions of losses, as investors took comfort from easing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.
The US stated that it is still open to negotiations with Iran and will take a call on supporting Israel within two weeks. This statement helped calm investor nerves and sparked a broad-based rally across the markets.
After a strong start, both the Sensex and Nifty ended the day with solid gains. The Sensex closed at 82,408.17, up by 1,046 points or 1.29 per cent.
During the day, it had touched an intra-day high of 82,488.21. The Nifty also gained 319.95 points or 1.29 per cent to close at 25,112.4.
"The national equity indices surged as Middle East tension moderated with risk of immediate military actions reduced as US dialogue with Iran is expected to take place," said Vinod Nair of Geojit Investments Limited.
He added that the development led the crude price to correct, favouring domestic markets and boosting foreign investors’ sentiments.
On the Sensex front, Maruti Suzuki India was the only loser. On the other hand, Bharti Airtel led the gains with a 3.27 per cent surge.
Other notable gainers included Mahindra & Mahindra, Power Grid, Nestle India, and others.