Stock Market: Sensex Rises 379 Points, Nifty Ends At 17,825; Auto Stocks Jumps 2.5 Per Cent

Stock update: Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, HDFC, and HDFC Bank were the lead gainers on the BSE

Sensex and Nifty, the two key equity benchmarks, on Tuesday settled near four-month high as gains in oil & gas, banking and auto shares helped the barometer continue winning run for the third straight session.

The domestic indices advanced on easing inflation concerns after the wholesale price-based (WPI) inflation cooled to a five-month low of 13.93 per cent in July. Buying in index majors such as Reliance Industries and HDFC twins also added to the momentum.

The BSE Sensex index advanced 379 points (0.64 per cent) to settle at 59,842. During the day, it jumped 460 points to 59,923. The broader NSE Nifty, on the other hand, climbed 127 points (0.72 per cent) to 17,825 as 42 of its constituents advanced.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, UltraTech Cement, HDFC, and HDFC Bank were the lead gainers. On the flip side, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, Tata Consultancy Services, and NTPC were the laggards.

The BSE Sensex was in the green zone throughout the day, with its 25 scrips advanced, while 4 declined out of the 30-share constituents.

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices settled 1 per cent higher each.

Sectorwise, Nifty Auto index jumped 2.5 per cent, followed by the Nifty Realty index (up 2 per cent). On the flipside, the Nifty PSB index dipped 0.3 per cent.

"The easing of inflationary pressures has encouraged domestic investors to remain optimistic about the pace of economic recovery. Better-than-expected CPI numbers, aided by slower increase in food and fuel prices, may limit the pace of rate hikes by the RBI," said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services.

In the previous session on Friday, the 30-share BSE index had ended 130 points (0.22 per cent) higher at 59,462, while the Nifty had advanced 39 points (0.22 per cent) to 17,698.

In Asian markets, Seoul and Shanghai ended higher, while Tokyo and Hong Kong settled lower. Equities in Europe were trading higher in mid-session deals. Markets on the Wall Street had ended higher on Monday.

Stock markets were closed on Monday on account of Independence Day.

Meanwhile, the international oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.86 per cent to $94.28 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the Indian capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 3,040.46 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.