Indian shares pause near lifetime highs, log weekly gains ahead of likely Fed rate cut

BENGALURU: Indian shares ended flat on Friday, after hitting all-time highs in the previous session, and logged their best week since the end of June ahead of a likely rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

The Nifty 50 closed 0.13% lower at 25,356.5, while the Sensex shed 0.09% to 82,890.94.

Both the indexes rose about 2% each for the week, their best gains since June-end.

Gains for the week were driven by a 3% rise in consumer stocks on hopes of demand revival and volume growth due to a stable monsoon. IT companies, which earn a chunk of their revenue from the U.S., gained 2.8% ahead of a near-certain Fed rate cut next week.

“All the liquidity, like we saw earlier this week with rising mutual fund inflows into equities and the rush for Bajaj Housing Finance IPO, will find its place in the markets, keeping them buoyant,” said Aishvarya Dadheech, founder and chief investment officer of Fident Asset Management.

Indian shares hit record high

“But the scope for further upside is crucially linked to whether U.S. economy sees a soft landing or not, given the rate cut is imminent.”

Media reports said that the Fed’s decision on a 25- or 50-basis point reduction will be a close call, with the odds of the larger cut rising to 45% from 28% a day ago.

Domestically, two-wheeler maker Bajaj Auto, telecom firm Bharti Airtel and consumer companies Britannia and Hindustan Unilever were among the top ten Nifty 50 weekly gainers.

Tata Motors lost 5.5% this week after UBS forecast a 21% slump for the company over the next 12 months, citing weakening financials.

Apart from the Fed’s rate decision on Wednesday, the focus will also be on Bajaj Housing Finance’s listing on Monday, after investors bid for 64 times the shares on offer in the hottest IPO so far in 2024.