Stock markets up in early deals on IT buying, fresh foreign fund inflows

Mumbai (PTI): Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty climbed in early trade on Thursday led by buying in IT stocks and fresh foreign fund inflows.

A rally in the US markets also helped the benchmark indices build gains during initial trading.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 303 points to 82,579.16 in early trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty went up 85.1 points to 25,567.60.

From the Sensex pack, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, HCL Tech, Eternal, Tata Consultancy Services and Maruti were among the biggest gainers.

InterGlobe Aviation, UltraTech Cement, Axis Bank and ICICI Bank were among the laggards.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 2,991.64 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also bought stocks worth Rs 5,118.57 crore.

"Strong buying by both FPIs (Rs 2,991 crore) and DIIs (Rs 5,118 crore) in the previous session is likely to provide added comfort to investors. Domestic fundamentals remain stable, and ongoing sectoral rotation is helping the indices absorb periodic profit-booking at higher levels," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

In Asian markets, South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 were trading in positive territory, while Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index quoted lower.

The US market ended higher on Wednesday.

Brent Crude, the global oil benchmark, climbed 0.25 per cent to USD 71.03 per barrel.

On Wednesday, the Sensex ended 50.15 points, or 0.06 per cent, higher at 82,276.07. The Nifty went up by 57.85 points or 0.23 per cent to settle at 25,482.50.