Indices continue to soar; Sensex ends 347 points higher, Nifty tops 13,350

The domestic stock market began the week on a strong note as the benchmark indices gained over 0.7 per cent each, led by buying in financial, and FMCG counters. 

The S&P BSE Sensex rallied 347 points, or 0.77 per cent to settle at 45,427 levels while NSE's Nifty ended at 13,356, up 97 points, or 0.73 per cent.

HUL (up 3 per cent), Bharti Airtel (up 3 per cent), HDFC (up 2.54 per cent), and ITC (up 2.5 per cent) were the top Sensex gainers.  

Market breadth was in favour of the bulls as out of 3,167 companies traded on the BSE, 2,035 advanced and 937 declined while 195 stocks remained unchanged.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE SmallCap index ended 1.3 per cent higher at 17,542.66 points while the S&P BSE MidCap gained 0.95 per cent to 17,554. 

On the sectoral front, barring Nifty Realty, all other indices on the NSE ended in the green. Nifty PSU Bank index ended over 2 per cent higher at 1,734 levels. 

Global markets

European shares slipped on Monday as rising tension between the United States and China sapped some appetite for risky assets, while Britain-based exporters outperformed as uncertainty over a Brexit trade deal battered the pound.

Germany’s trade-sensitive DAX index and the pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 0.1 per cent. 

In commodities, oil prices slipped from multi-month highs as a continued surge in coronavirus cases globally forced a series of renewed lockdowns, including strict new measures in Southern California in the United States, the world’s top oil consumer.

(With inputs from Reuters)