Stock Market Today March 20 LIVE: The Indian stock market benchmark indices Sensex, Nifty pared some gains but ended 0.5% higher on Friday, March 20 following gains in Asian peers after steep over 3% loss in the previous session. Sentiment was also aided by some fall in crude oil prices and well as a softer dollar.
Sensex ended 326 points or 0.44% higher at 74,533 while Nifty 50 jumped 112 points or 0.5% higher at 23,114.5.
In intra-day deals, Sensex surged 977 points or 1.3% to day’s high of 75,184 while Nifty rallied 302 points or 1.3% to intra-day high of 23,303.85. All sectoral indices were also in the green led by Nifty PSU Bank, Nifty Metal, Nifty IT and Nifty Auto. However, Nifty Bank and Nifty Fin Services ended in the red.
Broader markets also ended in the green with Nifty Midcap 100 up 0.7% and Nifty Smallcap 100 rising 0.2%.
The gains came on the back of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu saying that the country would refrain from targeting energy infrastructure going forward, adding that the conflict could end sooner than expected as Iran no longer has the capability to enrich uranium or produce ballistic missiles.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump said he has no plans to deploy ground forces, stating that he is “not putting troops anywhere” when asked about the possibility of sending troops.
Asian Markets Today
Asian equities edged higher on Friday after US markets recovered from intraday lows and oil prices eased, as efforts by the US and Israel helped calm concerns around the Iran conflict.
In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.3% to 5,781.20. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was closed on Friday on a holiday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 1% to 25,253.78, while the Shanghai Composite index was down 1.2% to 3,957.05. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.8% to 8,428.40. Taiwan’s Taiex was trading 0.4% lower, and India’s Sensex was up 1%.
Meanwhile, Japanese markets remained closed for a holiday, resulting in no cash trading in US Treasuries during Asian hours.
Gold Rate Today
Gold prices traded higher, but were headed for a third consecutive weekly decline, weighed down by a firm dollar and a hawkish US Federal Reserve. Spot gold price rose 0.2% to $4,657.50 per ounce. US gold futures for April delivery rose 1.1% to $4,657.90. Gold prices have declined more than 7% so far this week. Spot silver price gained 0.1% to $73 per ounce.
Crude Oil Prices
Crude oil prices fell from its highest close since July 2022. Brent crude oil price declined 1.01% to $107.57 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures dropped 1.74% to $93.89.
Brent crude rose as much as $119.13 a barrel on Thursday on attacks on energy infrastructure in the Middle East, triggering a global market rout.
Stay tuned to this segment for the latest news on the Indian stock market today.