Sensex, Nifty edge higher for 3rd day; power, IT stocks rally

Market continued its bull run for the third straight session, with Sensex rising nearly 107 points to close at an over 2-month high of 27,247.16 and Nifty crossing the key 8,400-level, led mainly by power, IT and banking stocks, ahead of key macro-economic data due today.
Besides, 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 per cent to Rs 6,778 crore in the December quarter over the year-ago period. TCS shares rose 0.87 per cent to Rs 2,343.30.

Bajaj Corp stock also moved higher by 1.36 per cent to Rs 376.45 today after the company reported a 17.19 per cent 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 per cent, 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 per cent. (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 per cent, followed by Powergrid (4.14 per cent), Infosys (3.20 per cent), L&T (2.57 per cent) and Wipro (1.52 per cent).
Lupin was battered the most by falling 2.03 per cent and HUL India lost 1.76 per cent.
On the sectoral front, power zoomed 3.19 per cent, followed by IT 1.92 per cent, Tech 1.55 per cent, Capital Goods 1.51 per cent, PSU 1.06 per cent and Oil&Gas 0.32 per cent.
Broader markets showed a mixed trend with BSE mid-cap rose 0.19 per cent, while small-cap down 0.16 per cent.

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 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.46, while Shanghai Composite declined 0.56 per cent.
In European markets, London FTSE was down 0.21 per cent, While Frankfurt fell 0.68 per cent and Paris 0.55 per cent.