Mumbai, Mar 17 (PTI) Benchmark Sensex climbed 567 points and Nifty closed near 23,600 in their second consecutive day of gains on Tuesday, boosted by a rally in metal and auto shares and a positive trend in global markets.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 567.99 points or 0.75 per cent to settle at 76,070.84. During the day, it surged 801.41 points or 1.06 per cent to 76,304.26.
The 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 172.35 points or 0.74 per cent to end at 23,581.15.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Eternal surged the most by 5.70 per cent. Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharat Electronics, Larsen & Toubro, Bharti Airtel and Maruti were also among the major gainers.
Infosys, Bajaj Finance, ITC, Tata Consultancy Services and HCL Tech were among the biggest laggards.
“The market extended its gains, driven largely by bargain hunting by domestic investors. Cyclical sectors such as autos, metals, and financials continued to be leaders rebounding after being among the worst affected during the sell-off. However, it is premature to conclude that this reversal is sustainable in the short term, as war-related uncertainties persist,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.
The BSE MidCap Select Index jumped 0.86 per cent and SmallCap Select Index climbed 0.67 per cent.
Among sectoral indices, metal surged 2.81 per cent, followed by auto (2.05 per cent), realty (1.79 per cent), commodities (1.69 per cent), consumer discretionary (1.54 per cent), industrials (1.54 per cent), capital goods (1.40 per cent), telecommunication (1.24 per cent) and Bankex (0.90 per cent).
IT, FMCG and BSE Focused IT were the laggards.
A total of 2,362 stocks advanced, while 1,892 declined and 157 remained unchanged on the BSE.
In Asian markets, South Korea’s benchmark Kospi jumped 1.63 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended marginally higher. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index settled lower.
Markets in Europe were trading higher. The US market ended higher on Monday.
“Indian equities extended their recovery for a second consecutive session, supported by easing volatility and selective sectoral strength, although underlying caution continues to shape market behaviour. A key positive was the sharp decline in India VIX, which dropped 8 per cent to sub-20 levels,” Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder, Livelong Wealth, said.
Sectorally, the rebound was led by the automobile space, with the Nifty Auto index gaining 2 per cent, he added.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, jumped 2.44 per cent to USD 102.7 per barrel.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 9,365.52 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), however, bought stocks worth Rs 12,593.36 crore.
On Monday, the Sensex jumped 938.93 points or 1.26 per cent to settle at 75,502.85. The Nifty climbed 257.70 points or 1.11 per cent to end at 23,408.80.
