Mumbai – Indian equity benchmarks rebounded strongly on Thursday, recovering some of the losses suffered in the previous three trading sessions.
The BSE Sensex jumped 352 points to hit an intraday high of 71,708 in early deals. The NSE Nifty 50 also climbed over 99 points to touch 21,616.
The rally was led by financial, auto, and banking stocks, while IT and metal shares faced some profit booking after the recent upmove.
Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, NTPC, PowerGrid, and SBI were the top gainers on the Sensex, rising as much as 4%. On the flipside, TCS, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Steel, and Maruti ended up among the laggards.
In the broader market, midcap and smallcap indices outshone benchmarks, surging up to 0.9% each. Realty stocks saw heightened interest, with the Nifty Realty index hitting 52-week high levels led by Godrej Properties, Oberoi Realty, and Prestige Estates.
Analysts attributed the rebound to the expiry of monthly derivatives contracts and value buying in oversold stocks after three days of consistent fall.
On Wednesday, the Sensex had plunged 527 points or 0.7% to end at 71,357, while the Nifty settled 142 points lower at 21,518 amid weak global cues. Investors were worried over growth concerns and the hawkish stance of central banks.
Meanwhile, the rupee opened mildly lower at 83.32 per dollar versus the previous close of 83.30 as rising crude oil prices and foreign fund outflows capped gains. Brent crude climbed to near $78.5 per barrel.
Going ahead, volatility is likely to be high due to the F&O expiry. Investors will also closely track the Union Budget for direction next week, experts noted.
