Closing bell: Sensex gains over 270 points, Nifty closes above 14,700 mark; Auto, IT, Metals lead

"We have crossed the 14,700 mark today. What needs to be seen is if the Nifty is able to sustain above this level for a day or two. If we are successful in doing so, the markets can scale up to 15,100-15,200. On the flip side, if this poses to be a resistance level, we could drop back to 14,400 and continue downwards to 14,000-14,100. We are in a "wait and watch" situation and have to tread this phase patiently," saidManish Hathiramani, proprietary index trader and technical analyst at Deen Dayal Investments.

"One more positive session with index given close at 14,733 with gains of nearly one percent and formed a bullish candle for the second consecutive day. Now index again reaching to its strong hurdle zone of 14,800-14,900 zone fresh breakouts will be only if Nifty sustains above 15,000 mark because we have witnessed profit booking from said levels in recent past, good support is formed at 14,670-14,600 zone managing above said level immediate structure positive," saidRohitSingre, Senior Technical Analyst atLKPSecurities.

"Amidst rising COVID cases, hopes of recovery through vaccine drives and a positive global market is aiding the domestic market to ride a positive wave. Biden’s decision to waive intellectual property rights on vaccines pumped in global optimism. Metal stocks continued to outshine other sectors as it kick-started its earning season on a better-than-expected note. Auto and IT were the other sectoral leaders while mid and small-cap stocks mirrored the trend," saidVinodNair, Head of Research atGeojitFinancial Services.

: The benchmark indices closed on a strong note on Thursday with the Nifty50 scaling above 14,700 levels.

The BSE Sensexrallied272.21 points to close at 48,949.76, and the Nifty50 was up 106.90 points at14,724.80. The broader markets also traded in line with frontliners as the Nifty Midcap 100 and Smallcap 100 indices gained 0.94 percent and 0.7 percent respectively.

: Hikal doubled its consolidated profit to Rs 50.92 crore in March 2021 quarter, compared to Rs 24.47 crore in March 2020 quarter. Revenue jumped to Rs 532.46 crore from Rs 378.99 crore YoY.

"Dovish Fed comments on Wednesday are supportive for precious metals; silver prices have additional support from increasing global economic optimism due to vaccination drive and relaxation in COVID-19 lockdown in leading economies such as US and Eurozone. As per reports on Wednesday, the number of vaccinations administered against the coronavirus has reached more than 1.1 billion globally. Still rising coronavirus cases globally are a major cause of concern," saidAbhishekBansal, Founder Chairman at AbansGroup.The overall global COVID-19 caseload has topped 154.7 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 3.23 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

"Silver prices are likely to trade firm on supportive economic data globally and dovish comments from central banks. Silver may trade firm while above key support levels of 50-day EMA of $25.997 per troy ounce and 200-dayEMA of $24.930, it may find some resistance around $27.303," he said.

: The company reported sharply higher consolidated profit at Rs 56.61 crore in Q4FY21 against Rs 17.81 crore in Q4FY20. Revenue jumped to Rs444.21 crore from Rs 296.77 crore YoY.

"The market witnessed some decisive trends and an attempt to overcome the resistance level around the Nifty 50 Index level of 14,700. While sustaining above 14,500 is the key factor from a short-term perspective, staying above this level market to gain momentum and to open the gate for a movement till 14,900-15,000. The momentum indicators like RSI, MACD to recover after staying neutral to bearish in recent time," saidAshisBiswas, Head of Technical Research atCapitalViaGlobal Research.

:Monsoon rains that mark the start of the four-month rainy season are likely to enter India through the southern coast around June 1, in line with typical patterns, a top government official said on Thursday.

India's weather office will issue its official forecast for this year's monsoon onset on May 15, MadhavanRajeevan, secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences, said in a tweet.

: Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, the Big Bull of D-Street, reduced stake in seven companies in the March quarter compared to the December quarter of FY21, data collated from AceEquity showed. Jhunjhunwala, who is widely followed by retail investors in India and is known for picking multibaggers, sequentially reduced in three companies and cut stake below 1 percent in four companies in Q4 FY21. Read more

: Consolidated net profit at Rs 50.9 crore against Rs 24.5 crore (YoY). Consolidated revenue was up 40.5 percent at Rs 532.5 crore against Rs 379 crore (YoY). Consolidated EBITDA gained 54.7 percent at Rs 109.3 crore against Rs 70.6 crore (YoY).