BENGALURU: Indian shares ended the holiday-shortened week about 4% higher on Thursday, underpinned by heavyweight financials, with risk sentiment bouyed by a rally in global markets after the US Federal Reserve hiked benchmark rates.

The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index closed 1.84% higher at 17,287.05, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex climbed 1.84% to finish at 57,863.93. Both indexes scaled above the key 200-day moving average.

The Nifty and the Sensex posted weekly gains of 3.95% and 4.17%, respectively. The markets will be closed on Friday for a holiday.

Indian shares rise on gains in bank, auto stocks; Fed meeting eyed

European and broader Asian markets climbed, joining a rally in Wall Street, after the US central bank increased rates by an expected quarter point while signalling equivalent hikes at every meeting for the rest of the year.

“The message from Powell and the FOMC forecasts is that the expected hikes will achieve disinflation without much slowing in growth or increase in unemployment,” said Madhavi Arora, lead economist at Emkay Global Financial Services.

Lower oil prices that allayed inflation fears, progress in Russia-Ukraine talks, and further easing of COVID-19 curbs amid an expanded vaccination drive for children also lifted investor appetite this week.

In Mumbai trading, the Nifty Financial Services Index added 2.77%. Non-banking financial firm HDFC Ltd climbed 5.4% to be the top percentage gainer in the Nifty 50.

Shares of Future Group firms fell between 7.6% and 14% due to regulatory woes of the group’s flagship company - Future Retail - regarding its proposed sale of retail assets to Reliance Industries.

Nxtdigital surged 8.1% after the media and communication company approved a merger with non-banking financial company Hinduja Leyland Finance on Wednesday.