Markets End Marginally Higher

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New Delhi:  Equity benchmark indices ended marginally higher on Thursday amid volatility faced during the last minutes of trading hours. The BSE Sensex eked out marginal gains of 44.42 points or 0.07 percent to settle at 61,319.51. During the day, it jumped 407.16 points or 0.66 percent to 61,682.25. The NSE Nifty advanced 20 points or 0.11 percent to end at 18,035.85.

From the Sensex firms, Tech Mahindra jumped 5.58 percent, followed by Nestle, Tata Steel, NTPC, Tata Consultancy Services, Asian Paints, Wipro, and Bajaj Finserv. ()

Mahindra & Mahindra, Hindustan Unilever, Axis Bank and Bajaj Finance were among the major laggards. "The domestic market absorbed the buoyancy in the global market, led by IT stocks, while upstream oil companies gained as a result of the slash in windfall tax. ()

After robust jobs data, strong retail sales numbers in the US showed proof of resilience in the US economy amidst concerns over elevated inflation numbers. However, the gains were capped by worries that a stronger economy would attract a tighter monetary policy," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

The government has cut windfall profit tax on export of diesel and ATF to their lowest while also reducing the levy on domestically-produced crude in line with softening international oil prices, according to an official order.

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) were net buyers as they bought shares worth Rs 432.15 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data. Among Asian markets, Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong ended higher, while China settled lower.

European markets were trading in the green. The US markets had ended in the positive territory on Wednesday. International oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.35 per cent to USD 85.08 per barrel.