Stock markets bounce back after two days of decline

Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty rebounded on Wednesday after two days of decline amid a positive trend in global markets and fall in crude oil prices.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 443.97 points, or 0.58 per cent, to settle at 76,922.64. During the day, it jumped 631.41 points, or 0.82 per cent, to 77,110.08.

The 50-share NSE Nifty rallied 140.10 points, or 0.59 per cent, to end at 24,005.85.

From the Sensex pack, Eternal, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, Adani Ports, Mahindra & Mahindra, and State Bank of India were among the major winners.

HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services, Tata Steel, and Infosys were among the laggards.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dropped 1.07 per cent to $72.17 per barrel.

The BSE MidCap Select index edged marginally higher by 0.20 per cent and SmallCap Select index eked out a marginal gain of 0.02 per cent.

Sectorally, realty jumped 3.56 per cent, FMCG (1.76 per cent), services (1.35 per cent), consumer discretionary (1.20 per cent), auto (1.10 per cent), MidSmall Private Banks Quality Tilt (0.97 per cent) and PSU bank (0.81 per cent).

Focused IT tumbled 2.53 per cent, IT (1.94 per cent), metal (0.87 per cent) and telecommunication (0.34 per cent).

A total of 2,276 stocks advanced, while 1,995 declined and 176 remained unchanged on the BSE.

“Indian benchmark indices opened on a positive note and extended their gains throughout the session, supported by improving global sentiment, easing geopolitical tensions, and stable crude oil prices,” according to Bajaj Broking Research.

In Asian markets, Japan’s Nikkei 225 index and Shanghai’s SSE Composite index settled higher, while South Korea’s Kospi ended lower.