MUMBAI: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty surged more than 1 per cent on Monday, driven by fresh foreign fund inflows and buying in banking and oil & gas shares.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 1,078.87 points or 1.40 per cent to settle at a six-week high of 77,984.38. During the day, it soared 1,201.72 points or 1.56 per cent to 78,107.23.
The NSE Nifty climbed 307.95 points or 1.32 per cent to 23,658.35. Intra-day, the benchmark rallied 358.35 points or 1.53 per cent to 23,708.75.
A positive trend in US and European markets added to the momentum in domestic equities, analysts said.
Among the Sensex stocks, NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India, Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank, HCL Tech, Reliance Industries, and Bajaj Finance led the gains.
Titan, IndusInd Bank, Zomato, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bharti Airtel, Nestle, and Infosys were among the laggards.
FII buying
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs7,470.36 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
“Short covering ahead of the monthly F&O expiry later this week fueled the rally, with Sensex breaching the psychological 78,000 mark intra-day amid across-the-board buying. Renewed optimism among foreign investors, coupled with strong cues from US and European markets, further boosted sentiment,” said Prashanth Tapse, senior vice president (research) at Mehta Equities Ltd.
Among Asian markets, Shanghai and Hong Kong closed higher, while Seoul and Tokyo ended lower. European markets were trading in positive territory. US markets closed higher on Friday.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude edged up 0.07 per cent to $72.21 per barrel.
With this six-day rally, Sensex has surged more than 4,100 points or 5 per cent, supported by easing FII selling pressure. Nifty has gained 1,260 points or 5.5 per cent since March 17.
