Equity markets ended slightly higher on Friday after the Reserve Bank of India left interest rates unchanged, a move that was widely expected, and announced a proposal to allow banks to lend to Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under prudential safeguards.The 30-share BSE Sensex rose 266.47 points, or 0.32 per cent, to close at 83,580.40. The index recovered sharply in the final hour, jumping over 650 points from the day’s low of 82,925.35, helped by late buying in select stocks. The NSE Nifty also finished higher, gaining 50.90 points, or 0.20 per cent, to settle at 25,693.70 after a volatile session.

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Earlier in the day, markets had opened cautiously and slipped into the red before staging a modest recovery.On the policy front, the RBI’s six-member Monetary Policy Committee unanimously voted to keep the repo rate unchanged at 5.25 per cent. The central bank also retained its neutral stance, indicating it may stay on hold for now. The decision came as inflation remained under control and growth concerns eased following higher government spending in the Budget and reduced tariff pressures after a trade deal with the United States, news agency PTI reported.Announcing the policy, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said, “To further promote financing to the real estate sector, it is proposed to allow banks to lend to REITs with certain prudential safeguards.” Market participants said this move could improve long-term funding visibility for the real estate sector and the broader credit ecosystem.Among Sensex stocks, ITC was the top gainer, jumping over 5 per cent. Kotak Mahindra Bank, Hindustan Unilever, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid and Bajaj Finserv also ended higher. On the other hand, Tata Consultancy Services, Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, Asian Paints, Eternal and HCL Tech were among the laggards.Commenting on the session, Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Investments Limited, said domestic markets remained subdued for most of the day before recovering on the back of buying in FMCG and private banking stocks.“The RBI’s policy announcement was broadly in line with expectations, maintaining status quo on interest rates while reiterating a constructive growth outlook,” he said, as quoted by news agency ANI.However, he added that markets had expected a slightly more dovish tone. The RBI’s decision to retain a neutral stance led to a rise in India’s 10-year bond yields. Nair also pointed out that global investors remain focused on US-Iran negotiations, crude oil prices, and developments in artificial intelligence and technology.Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth Rs 2,150.51 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.In global markets, Asian indices such as South Korea’s Kospi, Shanghai’s SSE Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng ended lower, while Japan’s Nikkei closed higher. European markets were mostly trading in the green. In the US, stocks had ended sharply lower overnight, with the Nasdaq falling 1.59 per cent.Meanwhile, Brent crude rose 1.20 per cent to $68.34 per barrel. On Thursday, the Sensex had dropped over 500 points, while the Nifty had declined more than half a per cent.

Discount chain Lidl has announced its seventh pay rise since 2023.

The German-owned group’s £29 million investment in pay rises will see entry-level pay rise to £13.45 an hour nationwide, increasing to £14.45 with length of service, from March 1. New starter pay in London will also increase from £14.35 to £14.80, rising to £15.30 with length of service.

The group, which employs more than 35,000 workers, claimed it was once again the “highest paying UK supermarket” following the moves.

It comes ahead of the national minimum wage rising by 50p from £12.21 to £12.71 per hour for eligible workers aged 21 and over from April 1.

Lidl said it was also doubling paternity leave from two to four weeks’ full pay, which will rise to eight weeks’ full paid leave after five years of service.

Stephanie Rogers, chief people officer at Lidl, said: “Our colleagues are the backbone of our business, and their success is our success.”

“We are continuing to mark unprecedented growth across Great Britain, creating thousands more jobs along the way, while continuing to invest in our people,” she added.

On the paternity leave changes, she said: “We believe that a longer period of paid paternity leave is a vital step on our journey towards gender equality in the workplace.”

Lidl revealed plans earlier this year to open 19 stores over the next eight weeks, which will create up to 640 jobs.

The group last year hit the milestone of opening its 1,000th store as it looks to add around another 40 sites in the year to February 28.

Lidl is currently Britain’s sixth-largest grocery chain, according to experts at Worldpanel, after making the biggest market share gains in the sector in recent months.

Recent figures from the group showed it enjoyed a strong Christmas, with a 10 per cent surge in sales seeing it notch up more than £1.1 billion in turnover in the four weeks leading up to Christmas Eve.