Sensex rises over 150 points, Nifty above 16,300
Equity benchmark Sensex jumped over 150 points in early trade on Thursday, tracking gains in index heavyweights ITC, ICICI Bank, and Reliance Industries amid a largely positive trend in global markets. The 30-share index was trading 155.90 points or 0.29 percent higher at 54,681.83, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 42.90 points or 0.26 percent to 16,325.15.
PowerGrid was the top gainer in the Sensex pack
PowerGrid was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising over 2 percent, followed by ITC, M&M, Bajaj Auto, ICICI Bank, and Tata Steel. On the other hand, Kotak Bank, IndusInd Bank, Dr. Reddy's, Sun Pharma, and Asian Paints were among the laggards.
Nifty inched up 2.15 points in the previous session
In the previous session, Sensex ended 28.73 points or 0.05 percent lower at 54,525.93, while Nifty inched up 2.15 points or 0.01 percent at 16,282.25. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs. 238.14 crore on Wednesday, as per provisional exchange data.
US inflation data for July has come at 0.5 percent
"Global equity markets have positive news from the US inflation data for July which has come at 0.5 percent. This is slightly lower than expected and confirms Fed thesis that is transitory inflation," said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services. The positive response of Dow and S&P to inflation numbers and the decline in the dollar index will strengthen the bulls.
Brent crude trading at $71.47 per barrel
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Tokyo and Seoul were trading with gains in mid-session deals, while Shanghai and Hong Kong were in the red. Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.04 percent to $71.47 per barrel.
