Banking, NBFC stocks jump today after RBI MPC keeps repo rate unchanged; Bank Nifty, Fin Nifty, PSU Bank gain

Banking and NBFC stocks jumped today after RBI MPC kept the key lending rate unchanged for the second time after CPI inflation remained under the RBI tolerance band of 2-6%. Bank Nifty jumped 130.95 points or 0.30% to 44,406.25 and Nifty Financial Services (Fin Nifty) gained 47.45 points or 0.24% to 19,585.55. Nifty PSU Bank rose  24.85 points or 0.61% to 4,121.75. AU Bank, Federal Bank, IndusInd Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, UCO Bank and Central Bank gained today. On Fin Nifty, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Indian Energy Exchange, HDFC and HDFC Bank were the top gainers.

Outlook remains bullish for banking stocks

“The banking sector’s robustness has been reaffirmed by the Governor, hence we may anticipate a stable or possibly bullish outlook for banking stocks, given their resilience to rate changes. The unchanged GDP forecast and a lowered inflation projection might further buoy investor sentiment and could fuel positive movements in sectors like consumer goods and agriculture that benefit from strong consumption and a normal monsoon. However, investors should stay cautious of any sudden global policy changes that could cause short-term volatility in the market,” said Sonam Srivastava- Founder at Wright Research.

NBFCs to benefit from interest rate cuts

“The banking sector is the most sensitive to changes in rate cycles and has been a major reason for incremental earnings in FY23 benefitting from the hikes and credit growth being robust and persistent. Prolonged rate cuts will eventually lead to narrowing NIM but we expect rate cuts to begin in the last quarter and hence the trend in the banking sector is likely to continue in FY24. NBFCs will be best positioned to benefit from cuts in rates as credit growth will improve followed by banks,” said Anil Rego- Founder and Fund Manager at Right Horizons PMS.