Sensex Gains as Oil Prices Ease

India’s BSE Sensex edged up about 0.2% to 74,435 on Friday, after the benchmark was largely muted in the previous session, as investors took some comfort from easing crude oil prices, while continued Middle East tensions and a rush of initial public offerings capped gains. Brent crude eased 0.7% to around $104.10 a barrel. Investors also remained focused on the National Stock Exchange’s roughly $2.3 billion initial public offering. Expected foreign inflows linked to the IPO could support the rupee, although the heavy IPO pipeline is also drawing liquidity away from the secondary market. Among stocks, Lodha (3.5%), Yatharth (6.6%), Netweb (1.6%), and Syrma SGS (3.6%) were among the notable gainers. Meanwhile, tech stocks remained in the red, led by Infosys (-1.2%), Tech Mahindra (-1.9%), Coforge (-1.2%), and Wipro (-1.1%). Tata group stocks were also among the notable decliners, with TCS, Tata Motors, Tata Investment Corporation, and Tata Chemicals falling between about 2.6% and 7.8%.