Indian share markets extended gains as the session progressed and ended on a strong note, taking cues from global stock markets.

Sentiment got a boost after the World Bank said it will give US$ 750 million as loan to India for strengthening small businesses that form the backbone of the country's economy and were devastated in the coronavirus pandemic.

The emergency lending will ensure liquidity for some 1.5 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) and protect millions of jobs, said the Bank in a statement.

India's current account turned positive in the last quarter of the 2019-20 fiscal year as a result of lower trade deficit and a sharp rise in net invisible receipts, the first quarterly surplus in 13 years.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood higher by 499 points (up 1.4%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed higher by 128 points (up 1.2%).

The SGX Nifty was trading at 10,400, up by 160 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE Mid Cap index ended up by 0.2%, while the BSE Small Cap index ended the day up by 0.4%.

On the sectoral front, gains were largely seen in the finance sector and banking sector.

Asian share markets ended on a positive note today. As of the most recent closing prices, the Shanghai Composite stood higher by 1.4%, while the Nikkei ended down 0.8%.

The rupee is trading at 75.60 against the US$.

Moving on, Glenmark Pharma was among the top buzzing stocks today.

Shares of the company tumbled 5% intraday today after Glenmark Pharmaceuticals USA was charged for conspiring to fix prices for generic drugs, the US Justice Department said in a statement.

The department said that Glenmark allegedly conspired with pharmaceutical maker Apotex Corp and other generic drug companies to increase the prices of cholesterol medication pravastatin and other generic drugs.

The charge was filed in US District Court in Philadelphia. The price-fixing conspiracy allegedly took place from 2013 to 2015 and caused a loss to victims of at least US$ 200 million.

Glenmark Pharma share price ended the day down by 3.5%.

In news from the macroeconomic space, India's manufacturing activity again contracted in June as regional lockdown extensions severely held back demand and labor logistic challenges remained, as per the monthly IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) survey.

Manufacturing PMI stood at 47.2 in June after May's 30.8 and April's historic low of 27.4. In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction.

A nationwide lockdown in April, coupled with a crash in export orders, had led to conditions across sectors falling by the biggest margin ever and new businesses collapsing at a record pace.

Since then, jobs have been hit the most and employment numbers saw a further slide in June. The PMI survey showed manufacturers cut jobs yet again, albeit at a quicker pace than May.

Despite normal life resuming since June 1 when the lockdown was lifted outside containment zones, manufacturing activity could not kick in fully. New orders fell for the third-month running.

In other news, the amendment in the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 which casts an obligation on stock exchanges, depositories and authorized clearing corporations to collect stamp duty on transfer of securities like equity shares, debentures and mutual fund units came into effect from today.

The government introduced this change through the Union Budget of 2019 by amending the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, and had initially planned to implement it from December last year. However, the implementation was deferred once and then again to July after the coronavirus outbreak.

Moving on to news from the commodity space, domestic gold prices hit an all-time high today, tracking a global rally, as surging coronavirus cases in many countries raised the metal's safe-haven appeal.

August gold futures on MCX hit an all-time high of Rs 48,871 per 10 grams in early trade, taking their gains to 25% in 2020 so far.

Tracking gold, silver futures surged past the 50,000 mark to Rs 50,779 per kg. Silver had surged about 3% in the previous session.

In global markets, gold hit US$ 1800 per ounce in New York's Comex Futures, the highest in eight years, lifted by investors seeking a safe bet as the world battles coronavirus pandemic.

US Federal Reserve Chairman Powell said last week that output and employment remain far below their pre-pandemic levels and cautioned that the outlook for the economy is "extraordinarily uncertain."

In 2011, gold reached above US$ 1900 and then fell sharply to consolidate at lower levels for years after falling to near US$ 1,000.

Speaking of gold, how lucrative has gold been as a long-term investment in India?

The chart below shows the annual returns on gold over the last 15 years...

Gold Has Been a Shining Long-Term Investment

As you can see, barring just two years - 2013 and 2015, gold has delivered positive returns in 13 of the last 15 years.