Sensex, Nifty gains from 3rd straight day; power, IT stocks rally

New Delhi: Continuing its bull run, the market on Thursday gained for the third straight session with the benchmark Sensex gaining nearly 107 points to end at over 2-month high while the Nifty crossed the crucial 8,400-level.

Ahead of the macro-economic data which is to be announced later today, the market gained led mainly by power, IT and banking stocks.

The Sensex closed at 27,247.16, a high in two months while the Nifty crossed the key 8,400 mark.

Moreover, a positive start of the earnings season also fuelled the domestic market sentiment.

Investors cheered better-than expected Q3 numbers in Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), whose net profit was up 10.9 percent to Rs 6,778 crore in the December quarter over the year-ago period. TCS shares rose 0.87 percent to Rs 2,343.30.

Bajaj Corp stock also moved higher by 1.36 percent to Rs 376.45 today after the company reported a 17.19 percent increase in standalone net profit at Rs 57.79 crore for the third quarter ended December 31, 2016.

The Sensex opened higher at 27,171.66 and continued its upward march to hit a high of 27,278.93 before settling 106.75 points, or 0.39 percent, higher at 27,247.16. The Sensex had closed at 27,517.68 on November 10 last year.

The gauge had gained 413.86 points in the previous two sessions.

The broader Nifty scaled a high of 8,417.20 but profit-taking pulled it down to close at 8,407.20, still up 26.55 points, or 0.32 percent. (The key index had closed at 8,525.75 on November 10, 2016).

Among 30 Sensex constituents, NTPC gained the most as it rose by 5.69 percent, followed by Powergrid (4.14 percent), Infosys (3.20 percent), L&T (2.57 percent) and Wipro (1.52 percent).

Lupin was battered the most by falling 2.03 percent and HUL India lost 1.76 percent.

On the sectoral front, power zoomed 3.19 percent, followed by IT 1.92 percent, Tech 1.55 percent, Capital Goods 1.51 percent, PSU 1.06 percent and Oil&Gas 0.32 percent.

Broader markets showed a mixed trend with BSE mid-cap rose 0.19 percent, while small-cap down 0.16 percent.

Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 1,116.15 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.

Out of 30-index stocks, 13 scrips ended with gains, while 17 registered loss.

Globally, Asian stocks ended lower with Japan's Nikkei fell 1.19 percent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.46, while Shanghai Composite declined 0.56 percent.

In European markets, London FTSE was down 0.21 percent, While Frankfurt fell 0.68 percent and Paris 0.55 percent.

With PTI Inputs