Sensex rebounds 180 points to close at 35,650, Nifty reclaims 10,700-mark; bank stocks gain

Mumbai: After gyrating nearly 700 points on Wednesday, benchmark equity indices reversed initial losses and ended higher driven by a rebound in banking stocks amid firming trend in the US market. The BSE Sensex broke its three-day falling streak by ending 179.79 points, or 0.51 percent, higher at 35,649.94. It fell to a low of 35,010.82 during afternoon trade. The broader NSE Nifty too recovered to reclaim the 10,700 level, rising 66.35 points, or 0.62 percent, to 10,729.85. [caption id=“attachment_5339631” align=“alignleft” width=“300”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] “Market recovered in the second half following a recovery in Dow futures. At current levels, Nifty 50 is on track to deliver nominal positive returns in CY18. Nifty is the only index among large markets that is positive for the calendar year,” said Viral Berawala, CIO of Essel Mutual Fund. The 30-share index had ended the previous session 271.92 points lower at 35,470.15, while the Nifty had lost 90.50 points. “Globally, investors would closely track political developments in US and slowdown in global economies. In the short term, liquidity and sentiment are set to drive the market,” Hemang Jani, Head - Advisory, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas, said. Nifty ended above 10,700 levels led by financials, FMCG stocks, he added. The biggest gainers on both bourses were Bharti Airtel, HDFC duo, L&T, Bajaj Auto, Kotak Bank, Reliance Industries, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, SBI, ITC and Bajaj Finance, rising up to 4 percent. On the other hand, Sun Pharma, Yes Bank, TCS, NTPC, Tata Motors, Infosys and ONGC fell up to 2 percent. The rupee, meanwhile, gained against the US dollar, and was trading at 70.08 per dollar. Brent crude, the international benchmark, was up 0.73 percent at USD 51.14 per barrel. On a net basis, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 577.10 crore Monday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 186.14 crore, provisional data available with BSE showed. Elsewhere in Asia, Korea’s Kospi ended 1.31 percent lower, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.40 percent and Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.26 percent; while, Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.89 percent.