FINAL TRADE: Sensex rallies 376 pts; Nifty settles at 22,041; Wipro, SBI Life and M&M up over 4%

Stock market today: The Indian stock market on Friday (February 16) settled higher amid buying on all counters except PSU Bank and oil & gas. Both indices closed over 0.50 per cent higher. The S&P BSE Sensex rose 376.26 points to 72,426.64, and the NSE Nifty was up 129.95 per cent at 22,040.7. 

"The Indian market continued its broad-based recovery, aided by positive global cues. Further, narrowing India’s trade deficit, led by softening commodity prices and a manufacturing push by the government, attracted investors to capital goods, metals, and industrial stocks. On the global front, an expectation of a pickup in consumption demand in China after the New Year holidays supported the global market sentiment," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, at Geojit Financial Services.

Meanwhile, Nifty Mid Cap 100 and Small Cap 100 settled over half a per cent higher. On the sectoral front, Nifty Bank was up 0.36 per cent at 46,384.85. 

Among the Nifty 50 stocks, 38 advanced, with Wipro, SBI Life, Adani Ports, Bajaj Auto, and M&M being the top gainers, rising between 2.72 per cent and 4.52 per cent. Conversely, Power Grid, SBI, Britannia, NTPC and Reliance Industries were the top laggards, slipping between 0.55 per cent and 2.54 per cent. 

Meanwhile, among the Sensex constituents, Wipro, M&M, and L&T were the top winners. 

GLOBAL MARKETS

Shares advanced in Europe and Asia on Friday after stocks on Wall Street set a fresh record following mixed reports on the state of the US economy. Tokyo's benchmark Nikkei 225 index traded near a record high, 35 years after it peaked, and then plunged with the collapse of Japan's financial bubble.

The future for the S&P 500 gained 0.1 per cent while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.1 per cent. 

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