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Mumbai: The BSE benchmark Sensex surged nearly 359 points to close above the 52,300-level on Thursday, with financial, pharma and IT shares gaining the most amid positive global cues.
The 30-share Sensex finished 358.83 points or 0.69 per cent higher at 52,300.47. Intra-day, the index swung between a high of 52,346.35 and a low of 51,957.92.
Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty climbed 102.40 points or 0.65 per cent to end at 15,737.75.
On the Sensex chart, Bajaj Finance, Bajaj FinServ, SBI, IndusInd Bank, Dr Reddy's, Tech Mahindra, ITC and Kotak Bank were the prominent gainers rising up to 7.29 per cent.
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On the other hand, Bajaj Auto, Maruti, HCL Tech, Ultratech Cement, PowerGrid, ONGC and Nestle suffered losses.
Of the 30 shares in the Sensex pack, 23 ended with gains.
Elsewhere in Asia, stock markets closed with gains ahead of crucial US inflation data for May.
On the forex market front, the Indian rupee lost 9 paise to end at 73.06 against the US dollar on Thursday.
"Many states have eased lockdown restrictions since the peaking of the second COVID wave in early May. The central bank is maintaining its accommodative stance, while the government has launched another fiscal package via the distribution of free vaccines and food," said Jen-Ai Chua, Equity Research Analyst Asia, Julius Baer.
"India is expected to vaccinate two-thirds of its population with a first dose by early 2022 -- a key move that should boost its COVID containment efforts. We maintain our constructive view on the market," he added.
The active COVID-19 cases in the country have reduced to 11,67,952 comprising 4 per cent of the total infections, while the national recovery rate has improved to 94.77 per cent, the Health Ministry data showed on Thursday.
Meanwhile, 94,052 new cases took the tally to 2,91,83,121; while a net decline of 63,463 cases has been recorded in the total number of COVID-19 cases in a span of 24 hours, the data showed.
Gold Declines Rs 259; Silver Tanks Rs 110
Gold in the national capital on Thursday declined Rs 259 to Rs 48,127 per 10 grams amid weak global trends, according to HDFC Securities.
In the previous trade, the precious metal had closed at Rs 48,386 per 10 gram.
Silver also dipped Rs 110 to Rs 70,274 per kg, from Rs 70,384 per kg in the previous trade.
HDFC Securities Senior Analyst (Commodities) Tapan Patel said, "Spot gold prices for 24 karat in Delhi fell by Rs 259 reflecting decline in COMEX (New York-based commodity exchange) gold prices."
In the international market, gold was trading lower at USD 1,880 per ounce and silver was flat at USD 27.65 per ounce.
Gold prices traded lower with firm dollar, he added.
Motilal Oswal Financial Services Vice-President (Commodities Research) Navneet Damani said, "Gold prices edged lower after trading steady in the past few trading sessions, weighed down by a firmer dollar."
He added that investors sat on the sidelines waiting for clearer signals on inflation levels and economic growth ahead of US data and the European Central Bank meeting later in the day.
Rupee Falls By 9 Paise, Breaches 73-Mark Against US Dollar
Extending losses for the third straight session, the rupee on Thursday fell by 9 paise to end at 73.06 (provisional) against the US dollar even as the domestic equity markets settled with significant gains.
Forex traders said the local unit is trading in a narrow range as investors looked to key US inflation data and European Central Bank meeting later in the day for further cues.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 72.96 per dollar as against its previous close of 72.97.
It hovered in the range of 72.94 to 73.12 during the day before ending at 73.06.
The domestic currency has lost 26 paise in the last three trading sessions.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.09 per cent to 90.20.
On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 358.83 points or 0.69 per cent higher at 52,300.47, while the broader NSE Nifty rose 102.40 points or 0.65 per cent to 15,737.75.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.07 per cent to USD 72.27 per barrel.
Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 846.37 crore, as per exchange data.
