Sensex ends 85 pts higher; Yes Bank cracks 5 pc

Extending gains for the third consecutive session, market benchmark BSE Sensex rose 85 points Wednesday, driven by gains in banking and IT stocks.

After a volatile session, the 30-share index settled 84.60 points or 0.22 per cent higher at 39,215.64. It swung 203 points intra-day, hitting a high of 39,284.73 and a low of 39,081.14.

The broader NSE Nifty ended 24.90 points or 0.21 per cent up at 11,687.50. During the day, the index hit a high of 11,706.65 and a low of 11,651.15.

Top gainers in the Sensex pack included SBI, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, Kotak Bank, IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, Infosys and TCS, rising up to 2.31 per cent.

On the other hand, Yes Bank was the biggest loser, cracking 5.25 per cent ahead of its Q1 results.

ONGC, Maruti, Bajaj Auto, NTPC, Axis Bank and Tata Motors were among the other losers, shedding up to 1.64 per cent.

"Globally the markets were soft on the back of fresh worries on the trade war. The Indian market continued to move sideways as the market is lacking triggers for steep directional moves. Markets have already factored in weak earnings however, expectations of rate cuts are keeping the market resilient.

"Bond yields rebounded 6bps after falling for consecutive five days," said Sunil Sharma, Chief Investment Officer, Sanctum Wealth Management.

Sectorally, BSE IT, teck, FMCG, bankex and finance indices ended up to 1.01 per cent higher, while auto, utilities, oil and gas, energy, telecom and power lost up to 1.01 per cent.

The broader BSE midcap and smallcap indices underperformed the benchmarks, shedding up to 0.15 per cent.

Elsewhere in Asia, Shanghai Composite Index, Hang Seng, Kospi and Nikkei ended in the red.

Equities in Europe were trading on a mixed note in their respective early sessions.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee depreciated 10 paise to 68.81 against the US dollar (intra-day).

Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.71 per cent to USD 64.81 per barrel.