Sensex rallies over 600 pts; Nifty tests 11,800

Equity benchmark BSE Sensex rallied over 600 points in afternoon trade on Tuesday led by gains in index heavyweights Reliance Industries, TCS, ICICI Bank and Tata Motors tracking strong quarterly earnings.

After hitting a high of 39,894.18, the 30-share index was trading 639.33 points, or 1.63 per cent, higher at 39,889.53 in mid-session, and the broader NSE Nifty advanced 175.85 points, or 1.51 per cent, to 11,803.65.

Tata Motors was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying over 13 per cent, after the company posted strong quarterly results.

The homegrown auto major on Friday reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 187.7 crore for the quarter ended September 30, against a loss of Rs 1,009.49 crore in the same period of 2018-19.

Shares of Reliance Industries (RIL) too rose nearly 3 per cent after the company on Friday said it will set up a new subsidiary to bring all its digital initiatives and apps under a single entity, and infuse Rs 1.08 lakh crore equity into this new unit.

RIL's restructuring of telecom/digital business raises focus on asset monetisation and debt reduction, Morgan Stanley said.

Yes Bank, Tata Steel, Vedanta, Tech Mahindra, M&M, TCS, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank too rose up to 8 per cent.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel, Kotak Bank and PowerGrid fell up to 5 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Tokyo were trading on a mixed note.

The rupee, meanwhile, appreciated 6 paise against the US dollar to trade at 70.83 in early session.

Brent futures, the global oil benchmark, slipped 1.28 per cent to USD 60.81 per barrel.