Stock markets close higher on firm global trends, foreign fund inflows

Mumbai: Benchmark Sensex closed higher by 123 points while Nifty rose for a sixth consecutive day on Wednesday following a rally in global markets amid optimism over US-China trade talks and foreign fund inflows.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rose by 123.42 points or 0.15 per cent to settle at 82,515.14. During the day, it climbed 391.79 points or 0.47 per cent to 82,783.5.

The 50-share NSE Nifty ended 37.15 points or 0.15 per cent up at 25,141.40, marking its sixth straight day of gains. In the six sessions to Wednesday, Nifty gained 598 points or 2.42 per cent.

From the Sensex pack, HCL Tech, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finserv, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors and Eternal were the lead gainers.

Power Grid, Adani Ports, IndusInd Bank, Nestle, HDFC Bank and Hindustan Unilever were among the laggards.

"Profit-booking continues in the broader markets, driven by elevated domestic valuations. However, large-cap resilience is supporting the indices, with institutional investors favouring companies with stable earnings outlooks.

"Auto and IT sectors remain in focus - auto stocks are gaining on improved monthly sales, while IT shares are benefiting from optimism around a potential US-China trade resolution," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi, Japan's Nikkei 225 index, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng settled in the positive territory. European equity markets were trading higher. US markets closed higher on Tuesday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,301.87 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.43 per cent to USD 67.16 a barrel.