Samvat 2078 starts on a positive note; Sensex, Nifty end higher

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Benchmark indices posted strong gains, during one-hour long Muhurat Trading session on November 4 to mark the beginning of the Hindu Samvat 2078, as investors built up fresh positions.

The BSE Sensex rose 296 points or 0.5% and it closed at 60067.62. The Nifty50 finished at 17,917 points, up 0.5% or 88 points.

Mahindra & Mahindra was the highest performer on the Sensex, rising nearly 3%, while HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries contributed the most to the index’s gains.

ICICI Bank, UltraTech Cement, Asian Paints, and Dr Reddy’s, on the other hand, all closed in the red, losing up to 0.43%.

Several retail players believe that purchasing stocks on Muhurat trading session is auspicious and make ceremonial purchases. In order to take advantage of the global cues or major developments, institutional investors and brokers also join the trading session.

All BSE sectoral indices, except metal, finished in the green, led by auto, consumer discretionary goods, capital goods, industrial goods and fast moving consumer goods.

The BSE small-cap index rose 1.36%, while the mid-cap index rose 0.73%, indicating a similar trend in the larger markets.

Muhurat trading

Every year on Diwali, domestic markets have a special one-hour Muhurat trading session to commemorate the start of the traditional Hindu calendar year, known as ‘Vikram Samvat.’ This year it marks the beginning of the Samvat 2078 as per Hindu calendar.

The muhurat trading session usually concludes on a favourable note as the majority of investors believe that now is the ideal time to buy, Ambareesh Baliga, an independent markets analyst was quoted as saying by Business Standard.

The BSE Sensex gained 16,133.94 points, or 36.97%, in the previous Samvat 2077, while the Nifty gained 5,048.95 points or 39.50%.

On November 5, the BSE and NSE will be closed in observance of ‘Diwali Balipratipada.’ The trading in currency, debt and equity markets will resume on November 8

The majority of investors believe that this year’s returns will be good but modest. According to the market analysts, investors should expect further volatility in the coming months as the US Federal Reserve and other central banks prepare to raise interest rates in response to rising inflation fears, the report added.