Sensex gallops 582 points ahead as Samvat 2076 unfolds, auto and metal stocks shine

Equity barometers closed nearly 1.5 per cent higher on Tuesday as full-day trading in the traditional Hindu accounting year Vikram Samvat 2076 began on a positive note after an extended weekend on account of Diwali.

The spurt followed positive global sentiment on hopes of a rate cut by the US Federal Reserve and progress in the on-going US-China trade talks. Besides, some reports suggested that the government is planning a series of tax alignments for equities in coming weeks in a bid to further boost investor sentiment.

The BSE S & P Sensex closed 582 points or 1.48 per cent higher at 39,832 while the Nifty 50 edged higher by 160 points to 11,787. All sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the green with Nifty auto up by 4.3 per cent, metal by 3.9 per cent, IT by 1.5 per cent and pharma by 1 per cent.

Among stocks, Tata Motors jumped by 16.5 per cent to wind up at Rs 172.15 per share after settling over 16 per cent higher during the one-hour Muhurat trading session on Sunday. In its Q2 results, the auto major reported improvement in the operational performance at Jaguar Land Rover, its Britain-based luxury vehicle arm.

Other automakers also moved up with Maruti Suzuki India gaining by 4.4 per cent and Eicher Motors by 3.7 per cent. Metal stocks too showed handsome gains with JSW Steel edging higher by 6.7 per cent, Tata Steel by 6.4 per cent and Vedanta by 3.6 per cent.

But telecom stocks floundered with Bharti Infratel slipping by over 9 per cent, Vodafone Idea by 8.1 per cent and Bharti Airtel by 3.3 per cent. Their downward slide continued after the Supreme Court last week rejected the operators' definition of adjusted gross revenue (AGR).

The judgement will negatively impact incumbent cash-strapped operators by over Rs 92,000 crore.

Meanwhile, Asian shares were mixed amid hopes of progress in US-China trade talks. Besides, investors hoped for an interest-rate cut by the US Federal Reserve later this week.

Japan's Nikkei rose by 0.47 per cent while South Korea's Kospi also added gains of 0.1 per cent.