New Delhi: Major benchmark indices – Sensex and Nifty – edged up on Tuesday led by all-round buying and a strong positive trend in global markets amid concerns about rising Covid cases.
The Sensex rose 477.24 points (0.83 per cent) to 57,897.48, while the Nifty 50 index gained 147 points (0.86 per cent) to end at 17233.25.
Gains across sectors led by financial, IT, consumer and oil and gas stocks pushed the headline indices higher.
Asian Paints, Sun Pharma, UltraTech Cement, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) were among the top gainers. On the other hand, IndusInd Bank, Power Grid Corporation of India were the top drags.
The broader indices also ended with smart gains. The BSE Midcap index rose 1 per cent and the Smallcap index rose 1.5 per cent.
In the previous session, the 30-share equity benchmark settled 295.93 points or 0.52 per cent higher at 57,420.24, and the Nifty settled 82.50 points or 0.49 per cent higher at 17,086.25.
Supriya Lifescience, which made its stock market debut on Tuesday, started trading at day’s high – a 55 per cent premium at Rs 425 against issue price of Rs 274 per share on BSE. The stock finally closed at Rs 389, up 42.1 per cent.
Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market as they sold shares worth Rs 1,038.25 crore on Monday, according to stock exchange data.
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Financial Services, said, “If the market’s ability to give discounts in the future holds true, the global economy is likely to grow well in 2022.”
US market resiliency (the S&P 500 hit its 69th record high on Monday) and a rise in crude oil are signs that omicron The variant, though increasing, is unlikely to affect economic activity in any meaningful way, he said.
Elsewhere in Asia, shares in Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading with losses in mid-session deals, while Seoul and Tokyo were positive.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.62 percent, near its highest level in a month.
In Asia, China recorded its highest daily increase in local COVID-19 cases in 21 months, as infections more than doubled in the northwestern city of Xian, its latest hotspot. The Japanese currency weakened to 114.935 yen per dollar for the first time since November 26, hitting a year-on-year low of 115.525.
Stock exchanges in the US ended the overnight session with strong gains.
Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.12 per cent to $78.31 a barrel.
,