Stock Market: Sensex Surges 563 Points, Nifty Closes Above 18,050. L&T Gains 3.5 Per Cent

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, L&T rises 3.5 per cent. HUL, HCL, HDFC twins, Reliance, and others emerged winners

Sensex and Nifty, the two key equity benchmarks, on Tuesday ended in the positive territory after despite a tepid global mood. The domestic indices edged higher throughout the day as investors sentiment got boosted due to wholesale inflation dropped to a 2-year low of 4.9 per cent in December and oil refiners rose in trade after the government cut windfall tax on crude and aviation fuel.

The S&P BSE Sensex closed at 60,656, up 563 points. On the other hand, Nifty50 closed at 18,053 levels, up 158 points.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, L&T rises 3.5 per cent. HUL, HCL, HDFC twins, Reliance, and others emerged winners. On the flip side, SBI, Bajaj twins, IndusInd Bank, Wipro, Tata Steel closed in the red.

Among individual stocks, shares of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) soared 4 per cent to hit a new high of Rs 2,214, on expectation of strong order inflows and improved execution. Shares of Speciality Restaurants rallied 11 per cent to hit a new high of Rs 278.50 ahead of its extra-ordinary general meeting (EGM) on Wednesday, January 18, 2023.

In the broader markets, Nifty SmallCap 100 and Nifty MidCap 100 indices declined up to 0.1 per cent.

India VIX, the volatility gauge, meanwhile, eased below 2 per cent.

Sectorwise, Nifty FMCG, Nifty Realty, and Nifty IT logged the most gains, up to 1 per cent. However, Nifty PSU Bank and Nifty Media indices lost the most, up to 1 per cent.

In the previous session on Tuesday, the BSE Sensex settled 168 points lower at 60,093 dragged by HDFC twins, Reliance, Axis Bank, ICICI bank, L&T, HUL, Airtel and M&M, down 1-2 per cent. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 closed 62 points lower at 17,895.

The US equity futures slumped in Tuesday's trade ahead of corporate earnings. Dow Futures, the S&P 500 Futures, and NASDAQ Futures skid up to 0.3 per cent. European markets, too, were muted this noon, as Stoxx 600, FTSE 100, and CAC 40 indices dropped up to 0.1 per cent.

Meanwhile, the rupee settled 19 paise lower at 81.77 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday, tracking a rebound in the greenback overseas and firm crude oil prices. Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows further weighed on investor sentiment.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 81.79 against the greenback, then lost ground and fell to an intra-day low of 81.89. The domestic currency finally settled at 81.77, down 19 paise over its previous close.

In the previous session on Monday, the rupee had settled at 81.58 against the US dollar.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures advanced 0.46 per cent to $84.85 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Monday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 750.59 crore, according to exchange data.