Rupee rebound, FII buying lift indices

Mumbai: Market benchmarks marched higher for the fifth straight session on Thursday as investors accumulated energy, financial and IT stocks amid a mixed trend in global equities. A rebounding rupee and fresh buying by foreign funds added to the momentum, traders said. Clawing back lost ground in early deals, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 284.42 points or 0.51 per cent to settle at 55,681.95. During the day, it jumped 340.96 points or 0.61 per cent to 55,738.49. Likewise, the broader NSE Nifty went higher by 84.40 points or 0.51 per cent to 16,605.25.

"With support from FII buying, the domestic market was able to withstand the downward pressure from global markets to close on a positive note. Global indices traded lower on rate hike worries," said Vinod Nair, head (research) at Geojit Financial Services. "FIIs have turned net buyers of local shares to the tune of Rs1,781 crore on Wednesday, extending the buying momentum for the third straight session," said Prashanth Tapse, vice-president (research), Mehta Equities Ltd. "Nifty rose for the fifth consecutive session on July 21 aided by encouraging overnight US markets cues. Nifty opened flat and rose gradually through the day before breaking out upwards in the last half hour," said Deepak Jasani, head (retail research), HDFC Securities.

"Markets managed to gain half a per cent amid volatility on a weekly expiry day. The benchmark remained range-bound for most of the day and finally settled around the day's high. Meanwhile, healthy buying in banks, metals, and FMCG pack and buoyancy on the broader front kept the participants busy," Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said.