Sensex zooms 440 pts, Nifty hits 16-mth high on global cues

In line with strong global markets, the BSE benchmark Sensex rallied over 440 points to close at an over 13-month high of 28,343.01 and the broader NSE Nifty hit 16-month highs by going past the crucial 8,700-mark, as gains were seen across the board.
Trading in the green throughout the day, the benchmark BSE Sensex added 440.35 points, or 1.58 per cent, to end at 28,343.01, a highest closing since July 23, 2015. It hovered between 28,478.02 and 28,010.66. The gauge had gained 120.41 points in yesterday's session.
This is the biggest single-session gain since July 11, 2016 when it had gained 499.79 points.

Investor sentiment also got a shot in the arm after positive corporate earnings, brokers said.
The broader NSE Nifty retook the key 8,700-mark and hit a high of 8,750.60 before settling up by 136.90 points, or 1.59 per cent, at 8,744.35, its highest closing since April 15, 2015 when it had closed at 8,750.20.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 286.52 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.

Automaker stocks stole the show as investors were seen widening their bets on hopes of a sales rebound with Bajaj Auto, Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors and M&M soaring by up to 3.09 per cent, helping the key indices to regain their crucial levels.

Most Asian markets remained firm, with Hong Kong's Hang Seng rising 0.85 per cent. Shanghai Composite Index up 0.15 per cent, while Singapore rose 0.06 per cent. Japan's Nikkei, however, ended a shade lower.
European indices advanced in early trade amid increasing confidence in the global economy. The Frankfurt's DAX 30 added 1.10 per cent and Paris CAC gained 0.93 per cent, while London's FTSE was up 0.04 per cent.
Other major gainers were Asian Paints, GAIL, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Wipro, Hindustan Unilever, Sun Pharma, Lupin, TCS, ONGC, Infosys, ITC Ltd, Cipla, Power Grid, NTPC and Dr Reddy's.
However, Bharti Airtel emerged as the only loser with a fall of 2.82 per cent to Rs 332.10.

As many as 29 scrips out of the 30-share Sensex pack ended higher.
Broader markets too were in a bullish form, with the small-cap and mid-cap firming up 1.02 per cent and 0.80 per cent, respectively, after investors raised their bets.
Among the BSE sectoral indices, auto rose the most by 1.81 per cent followed by IT 1.77 per cent, bankex by 1.49 per cent, FMCG 1.41 per cent, healthcare 1.39 per cent, teck by 1.29 per cent, PSU by 1.25 per cent, oil&gas 1.14 and realty 0.97 per cent.