Mumbai, May 6: Benchmark Sensex rallied 940 points while Nifty settled above 24,300 on Wednesday following a sharp decline in crude oil prices after US President Donald Trump claimed progress in negotiations with Iran towards an agreement to end the war.
Helped by fag-end heavy buying, the 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 940.73 points, or 1.22 per cent, to settle at 77,958.52. During the day, it surged 1,004.99 points, or 1.30 per cent, to a day’s high of 78,022.78.
The 50-share NSE Nifty rallied 298.15 points, or 1.24 per cent, to end at 24,330.95.
A positive trend in global markets aided the rally in domestic stocks.
Among the 30-Sensex firms, InterGlobe Aviation was the biggest gainer, soaring by 6.6 per cent after a slump in crude oil prices and the announcement of a credit line for airlines hit by the West Asia crisis.
Trent rose by 3.91 per cent, Asian Paints by 3.56 per cent, State Bank of India by 3.38 per cent, HDFC Bank by 3.11 per cent, and Eternal by 2.98 per cent.
Reliance Industries was the biggest loser, shedding 1.8 per cent. Larsen & Toubro, Power Grid and NTPC were also among the laggards.
Broader markets also rallied with the BSE SmallCap Select index jumping 2.25 per cent and the MidCap Select index by 2.10 per cent. Among sectoral indices, banking, financials, and realty led the rally, while energy and FMCG remained relatively subdued.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, tumbled 8 per cent to USD 101.1 per barrel.
Sectorally, Telecommunication jumped 2.94 per cent, followed by Services (2.89 per cent), PSU Bank (2.81 per cent), Realty (2.76 per cent), Bankex (2.64 per cent), Private Banks index (2.51 per cent), Financial Services (2.47 per cent) and Healthcare (1.99 per cent).
Energy, FMCG, Utilities and Power were the laggards.
A total of 2,862 stocks advanced, while 1,365 declined and 167 remained unchanged on the BSE.
In Asian markets, South Korea’s benchmark Kospi, Shanghai’s SSE Composite index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index ended higher. Kospi surged over 6 per cent.
Markets in Europe were trading sharply higher. US markets ended in positive territory on Tuesday.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 3,621.58 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.
On Tuesday, the Sensex dropped 251.61 points or 0.33 per cent to settle at 77,017.79. The Nifty edged lower by 86.50 points or 0.36 per cent to end at 24,032.80. (PTI)
