Benchmark indexes Nifty 50 and Sensex halted a five-session losing skid, putting an end to a broad-based selloff. The Nifty 50's optimism comes after a stronger-than-expected US jobs data, which assuaged investors' concerns about a recession or a slowing US economy.
At 9:15 a.m., the Sensex was up 239 points, or 0.3%, at 81,927, while the Nifty was up 86 points, or 0.3%, at 25,101.
The US labor market expanded the fastest in six months in September, and the unemployment rate decreased to 4.1 percent, according to the data. Following the employment data on October 4, US markets rose on further signals of a healthy labor market.
Asian equities also climbed as the report highlighted the soundness of the world's largest economy and increased hope for a gentle landing, according to Deepak Jasani, Head of Retail Research at HDFC Securities.
The Reserve Bank of India's Monetary Policy Committee will convene today, October 7, and will continue till October 9. Market players will keenly watch signals from the central bank to see if the RBI agrees with the US Federal Reserve on prospective interest rate reduction.
This is the first MPC meeting after the appointment of three new external members: Ram Singh, Director of the Delhi School of Economics, Saugata Bhattacharya, a seasoned economist, and Nagesh Kumar, Director and CEO of the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development.
In the broader market, the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indexes rose by more than 0.6 percent apiece, beating the benchmarks. Meanwhile, India VIX, sometimes known as the fear indicator, fell 0.3 percent to 14.08. Twelve of the thirteen sectoral indexes were in positive territory. However, Nifty Consumer Durables was the day's solitary outlier, losing 0.2 percent.
Over the last several days, the headwinds from escalating geopolitical tension in West Asia, along with FII flows to China, have dampened market confidence. The battle has resulted in rising oil prices, which has depressed the mood since it may postpone the RBI's rate lowering plans.
So far in October, foreign institutional investors have net sold shares worth Rs 30,720 crore in three trading days. Analysts predict FPI flows to continue erratic. On the other hand, during the last five sessions, China-focused funds have received astonishing inflows totaling more than $13 billion.
Last week, the benchmarks fell 4%, but the loss was not restricted to the main indexes; sectors such as auto, banking, infrastructure, and energy declined. However, the impact on the IT index was minor due to better revenue and spending confidence after the US Federal Reserve's monetary policy easing.
