Indian shares rose on Oct. 29 after the Federal Reserve held rates steady, despite Brent crude above $110 a barrel and foreign investors selling shares during the session.
At Thursday’s close, the BSE Sensex gained 905.01 points, or 1.24%, to 74,151.04. The NSE Nifty 50 rose 237.90 points, or 1.05%, to 22,936.75, Reuters reported. The gains partly reversed losses of about 2% in each index over the previous seven sessions, Reuters said. It also cited upbeat quarterly earnings as part of the market backdrop.
The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), the Fed’s policy-setting body, voted 10-2 on Oct. 28 to keep the federal funds target range at 3.75% to 4%. Fed Governor Lisa D. Cook and Cleveland Fed President Beth M. Hammack dissented in favor of a 0.25-percentage-point increase. The Fed’s statement said, “Inflation remains elevated.”
U.S. Treasury daily data put the 10-year yield at 5.05% on Oct. 28 and 4.98% on Oct. 29. The readings use indicative quotes collected around 3:30 p.m. ET, after Indian markets had closed, so they do not show the yield during India’s session. Reuters separately reported that the yield initially moved higher after the Fed announcement before it was quoted at 4.98% in Asian hours, six basis points lower.
Reuters put Brent crude futures at $114.40 a barrel during Thursday trading, a 0.8% drop. The Economic Times described crude above $110 as a risk for India’s oil-import-dependent economy.
Provisional cash-market data from the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE), combining figures for the NSE, BSE and MSEI, showed foreign investors were net sellers of ₹943.60 crore on Oct. 29. Domestic institutions were net buyers of ₹1,924.41 crore. The FOMC’s next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 8-9.
