Closing Bell: Nifty ends above 16,600, Sensex gains over 400 points; IT, energy stocks shine

Snapping a two-day losing streak, the domestic equity market ended higher by more than half percent on Thursday. Led by IT and oil & gas stocks, the broader Nifty50 settled above 16,600, while the Sensex gained more than 400 points to close around 55,800.  

Following benchmark indices, Nifty Midcap and Smallcap too rose 0.7% and 0.6% on Thursday's closing.  

On sectoral front, Nifty oil & gas stocks gained the most as the index ended with nearly two per cent gain, it was closely followed by IT, which settled with over 1.5% gain.  

Among stocks, Reliance Industries led the rally on benchmarks, gaining more than 3.5%. Bajaj Finserv, Sun Pharma, HCL Tech, TCS, Infosys and Asian Paints were other notable gainers.  

Apollo Hospitals was the top loser on Nifty50, while HDFC Ltd dragged the Sensex pack in an otherwise positive market. Hero Mot Corp, Eicher Motors, Power Grid, Hindustan Unilever, HDFC Bank and Kotak Bank were other top losers.