Sensex settles 178 pts higher; defence stocks rally up to 12%

Friday,   03-Jul-2020   04:06 PM (IST)

Benchmark indices climbed off the day's top, but still ended around 0.5 per cent higher on Friday amid buying in IT, auto, and FMCG counters. The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 36,021, up 178 points or 0.5 per cent, having risen to as high as 36,110 earlier in the day. The Nifty50 index settled above the 10,600 level at 10,607, up 56 points or 0.53 per cent. Bharti Airtel (up 4 per cent) and Bajaj Auto (up 2.5 per cent) were the top Sensex gainers. Reliance Industries gained 1.5 per cent after the company announced that Intel has invested Rs 1,894.5 crore in Jio Platforms for a 0.39 per cent stake. Further, shares of defence companies rallied in the trade and climbed up to 12 per cent on the BSE after the Ministry of Defence (MoD) approved the purchase of weapons and equipments worth Rs 38,900 crore. Bharat Dynamics ended 12.55 per cent higher at Rs 375.80 on the BSE while Bharat Electronics gained 9 per cent to Rs 97.25. Moreover, JB Chemcials rose 3 per cent during the day after it said global investment firm KKR will pick up a controlling stake of 54 per cent in the company. The stock, however, ended flat. Meanwhile, HDFC Life gained around 4.5 per cent as the company will replace Vedanta on Nifty with effect from July 31.