The key domestic equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday opened sharply higher tracking positive global cues. Investors exuded confidence after the US Federal Reserve hinted at slowing down interest rate hikes which also lifted stocks globally.
At 10.30 am, the BSE Sensex was up 723 points at 56,539, while the broader NSE Nifty was trading at 16,839, up 197 points.
On the 30-share Sensex platform, Bajaj Finance was the top gainer, with 9.12 per cent. Bajaj Finserv, IndusInd Bank, Infosys, TechM, Axis Bank, Tata Steel, Wipro, Kotak Bank, and others were performing well. On the flipside, Dr Reddy’s was the main loser, down 1.01 per cent. Airtel, UltraCemco, Sun Pharma, and ITC were trailing.
In the broader markets, Nifty500, Nifty MidCap 50, and Nifty SmallCap 50 were also trading in the green, up to 0.7 per cent higher.
On NSE, nine out of the 15 sector gauges were trading in the green. Sub-indexes Nifty Bank, Nifty Financial Services, and Nifty IT were outperforming the NSE platform by rising as much as 1.03 per cent, 1.26 per cent, and 1.37 per cent, respectively.
The overall market breadth was strong as 1,684 shares were advancing, while 732 were declining on the BSE.
In the previous session on Wednesday, Sensex had surged 548 points (0.99 per cent) to close at 55,816, while Nifty had moved 158 points (0.96 per cent) higher to settle at 16,642.
The rupee appreciated 14 paise to 79.77 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday tracking the overnight weakness of the American currency. However, higher oil prices, month-end importer demand and global recession fears could restrict the gains for the local unit, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 79.80 against the American dollar, and touched 79.77 in initial deals, registering a gain of 14 paise over the last close.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.83 per cent to $107.50 per barrel.
Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday, offloading shares worth Rs 436.81 crore, as per exchange data.