Sensex Closes 147 Points Higher, Nifty Settles At 11,589

S&P BSE Sensex rose 147.01 points to close at 38,389.82 on Friday, while the NSE Nifty settled at 11,589.10, registering a gain of 52.20 points, or 0.45 per cent. That marked a second straight day of gains for the markets. Gains on Friday were led by auto and metal stocks. Auto shares zoomed on sustained buying by domestic institutional investors amid the rupee staging a recovery. On the 50-scrip Nifty index, 32 stocks closed in the positive zone. Top gainers on the Nifty50 were Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, Lupin, Bharti Airtel and Mahindra & Mahindra, finishing the day with gains of 4-5.5 per cent.

Trading sentiment got a massive lift following the government's decision to exempt electric vehicles (EVs) and automobiles run on alternative fuels from permit requirements in a bid to boost such vehicles in the country, brokers said.

The Nifty Auto, a sectoral index on the NSE comprising automobile stocks, gained 2.2 per cent.

The Nifty Metal closed 1.86 per cent higher. The gains were led by MOIL Limited and Jindal Steel, which gained over 4 per cent. Nifty Pharma also finished 0.74 per cent higher with Aurobindo Pharma gaining 5.70 per cent.

The upside in the markets was also supported by fund inflows.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs. 455 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) made purchases to the tune of Rs. 611.98 crore on Thursday, provisional data showed.

On the other hand, the top loser on both the indices was Yes Bank, which lost as much as 5 per cent.

On a weekly basis, both the Sensex and Nifty halted their six-week winning streak by falling 25.25 points or 0.66 per cent, and 91.40 points or 0.78 per cent, respectively.

Meanwhile, world shares limped toward their worst week in almost six months on Friday, with Asia carving out a 14-month trough as investors braced for a new salvo of Sino-US tariffs, news agency Reuters reported.

A slump in Wall Street overnight and reports that US President Donald Trump had also weighed a trade scrap with Japan dragged on tech-heavy Asia overnight, while Europe's main bourses faded after an initial attempt push higher. (With agency inputs)