Markets rally for 2nd day: Sensex jumps 874 points; Nifty tests 17,400

Equity markets maintained their winning momentum for the second day in a row on Thursday, with the Sensex surging over 874 points, propelled by index majors Reliance Industries, Infosys and HDFC twins amid a mixed trend in global markets.

The BSE benchmark Sensex zoomed 874.18 points or 1.53 per cent to finish at 57,911.68. During the day, it jumped 954.03 points or 1.67 per cent to 57,991.53.

The NSE Nifty rallied 256.05 points or 1.49 per cent to 17,392.60.

From the 30-share Sensex pack, M&M, Maruti, Bajaj Finserv, Asian Paints, Reliance Industries, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC, TCS, Sun Pharma, Infosys and IndusInd Bank were among the major gainers.

In contrast, Tata Steel, Nestle and Bharti Airtel were the laggards.

Elsewhere in Asia, markets in Tokyo and Seoul settled in the green, while Hong Kong and Shanghai ended lower.

Markets in Europe were trading mostly higher in the afternoon session.

Stocks in the US had ended on a mixed note on Wednesday.

International oil benchmark Brent crude gained 1.40 per cent to USD 108.3 per barrel.

"Bulls came back strongly today after a pretty long wait helped by the Energy sector which is seeing robustness in gross refining margins. Almost all sectoral indices led by Automobiles traded in the Green with the volatility index cooling off.

"Accumulation seen in some of the big boys which led the fall during the last one week helped the Bulls get back strongly today," according to S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP securities.

Foreign institutional investors continued their selling spree, offloading shares worth a net Rs 3,009.26 crore on Wednesday, according to stock exchange data.

Rupee gains 15 paise to end at 76.15 against US dollar

The rupee appreciated by 15 paise to close at 76.15 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday amid a weak greenback overseas and a rally in domestic equities.

However, surging crude prices and persistent foreign fund outflows capped the gains, forex traders said.

At the interbank forex market, the rupee opened slightly higher at 76.28 against the greenback and moved in a range of 76.36 to 76.09.

It finally settled at 76.15, higher by 15 paise over its previous close of 76.30.

On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 874.18 points or 1.53 per cent higher at 57,911.68, while the broader NSE Nifty jumped 256.05 points or 1.49 per cent to 17,392.60.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.02 per cent to USD 107.89 per barrel.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, slipped 0.43 per cent to 99.98.