Markets extend gains on fag-end buying; SBI, Reliance shine

Mumbai, February 14

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty bounced back from early lows to close higher on Wednesday, helped by fag-end buying in energy, metal and utility stocks amid a mixed trend in global equities.

Rising for the second straight session, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 267.64 points or 0.37 per cent to close at 71,822.83 points. The index swung between a high of 71,938.59 points and a low of 70,809.84 points during intra-day trades.

The broader NSE Nifty also gained 96.80 points or 0.45 per cent to end the day at 21,840.05 points.

State Bank of India was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 4.24 per cent, followed by Tata Steel, Axis Bank, Maruti, NTPC, PowerGrid, ITC and Nestle India.

Reliance jumped 1.15 per cent to end at Rs 2,962.60 apiece on BSE. Shares of SBI closed at Rs 743.35 apiece.

In contrast, Tech Mahindra, Sun Pharma, TCS, Infosys and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 settled in the negative territory while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and South Korea’s Kospi indices ended in the green.

China’s financial markets are closed for the Lunar New Year holidays. European markets were trading on a positive note in early deals.

The US market ended with significant losses in the overnight trade on Tuesday. Global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.78 per cent to USD 82.64 a barrel on Tuesday.

In the previous session, Sensex surged 482.70 points or 0.68 per cent to settle at 71,555.19 points. Nifty climbed 127.20 points or 0.59 per cent to close at 21,743.25 points.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets on Tuesday as they purchased shares worth Rs 376.32 crore, according to exchange data.