Equity benchmarks close higher for 2nd day in row as power & metal stocks shine

Mumbai: Benchmark stock indices Sensex and Nifty closed higher on Tuesday, marking their second straight day of gains as metal and power and select financial shares advanced.

Losses in index majors Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and Airtel, and foreign fund outflows restricted gains, analysts said.

Rising for a second straight day, the BSE Sensex rose by 79.22 points or 0.12 per cent to settle at 65,075.82, tracking firm global markets. During the day, it jumped 232.43 points or 0.35 per cent to 65,229.03.

The NSE Nifty gained 36.60 points or 0.19 per cent to end at 19,342.65.

From the Sensex pack, Jio Financial Services Ltd jumped 4.72 per cent. Tata Steel, Tech Mahindra, NTPC, JSW Steel, Power Grid, UltraTech Cement, HCL Technologies and HDFC Bank were among the major gainers.

Bharti Airtel, Hindustan Unilever, Axis Bank, Reliance Industries, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank were among the laggards.

The rupee declined by 8 paise to settle at 82.71 against the US currency on Tuesday due to a rebound in crude oil prices and greenback in the global markets.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.63 per cent to $84.95 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 1,393.25 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.