Sensex ends 280 points higher

Mumbai: Equity benchmark Sensex jumped 280 points on Tuesday following gains in index majors HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Reliance Industries despite a weak trend in global markets.

The 30-share BSE index ended 280.15 points or 0.56 per cent higher at 50,051.44. The broader NSE Nifty advanced 78.35 points or 0.53 per cent to 14,814.75.

UltraTech Cement was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising around 3 per cent, followed by IndusInd Bank, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Titan, Axis Bank, SBI and Maruti.

On the other hand, ONGC, PowerGrid, ITC, NTPC, M&M and HDFC were among the laggards.

Domestic equities rebounded sharply despite weak global cues mainly supported by sharp recovery in financial stocks, said Binod Modi, Head – Strategy at Reliance Securities.

“The Supreme Court pronounced that waiver of compound interest during loan moratorium should be for all. While there is still ambiguity about who will be bearing the additional burden, the comfort about the possible end of uncertainty about banks’ NPAs led bank stocks to see sharp up-move,” he noted.

Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 3.53 per cent lower at USD 62.34 per barrel.