FINAL TRADE: Sensex ends 394 pts higher, Nifty reclaims 19,800 amid broad-based buying; TCS dips 0.4% ahead of results

Stock market today: Domestic equity benchmarks staged extended gains to a second straight session on Wednesday backed by buying across a majority of sectors, with stocks from the financial, oil & gas, auto and FMCG sectors being the biggest movers. Investors awaited the onset of the earnings season for domestic cues, with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) due to report its quarterly numbers later in the day.

Dalal Street took positive signals from global markets on the back of stable crude oil prices, and dovish comments from key Federal Reserve officials that eased concerns about higher-for-longer interest rates, and hope that the Israel crisis might not impact the world economy.

The Sensex ended 393.69 points or 0.60 per cent higher at 66,473.05 and the Nifty settled with a gain of 121.5 points, or 0.62 per cent, at 19,811.35.

Among the Nifty stocks, 37 stocks advanced with Hero MotoCorp, Grasim, Wipro, UltraTech Cement, and Reliance Industries being the top winners, rising between 1.62 per cent and 4.04 per cent for the day. Among the laggards were HCL Tech, Coal India, LTIMindtree, SBI and TCS, slipping between 0.44 per cent and 1.65 per cent.

Wipro, UltraTech Cement, and Reliance Industries were the top contributors to the rise in the 30-scrip index.

The Nifty Mid Cap 100 and Small Cap 100 indices also settled in the green.

The high-beta Nifty Bank index was up 0.35 per cent at 44,516.9 at the end of the day.

BUZZING STOCKS 

Here are some of the stocks that buzzed in trade on October 11:

• Laxmi Organic Industries shares surged over 11 per cent after the company fixed its issue price for a qualified institutional placement (QIP) of shares. 
• KPIT Technologies shares rose over 4 per cent after Goldman Sachs raised its price target for the stock.
• Sunteck Realty finished with a gain of over 4 per cent after Jefferies raised its price target for the stock.
• Zomato shares ended over 2 per cent higher after ICICI Securities reiterated its 'buy' rating for the food delivery company with a revised target price of Rs 160 apiece.
• Phoenix Mills ended over 3 per cent higher after Morgan Stanley maintained its 'overweight’ rating for the stock.
• MCX shares closed over 2 per cent higher after the bourse said it would shift to a new platform on October 16.
• Bank of Baroda shares dropped over 3 per cent after the RBI banned the PSU lender from new customers to its mobile app BOB World. 

GLOBAL MARKETS 

Equities in other major Asian markets strengthened, mirroring overnight gains on Wall Street, with MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan rising 1.2 per cent. In China, investor sentiment also got a boost from a report by the news agency Bloomberg, citing sources, that the country's government is considering boosting spending on construction to support its economy. China's lackluster recovery from the blows to its economy during the COVID-19 pandemic has weighed heavily on regional and global growth.

Meanwhile, Dow Jones, S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite futures were up 0.2-0.3 per cent on Wednesday evening, suggesting a mildly positive start ahead in the US.  

With inputs from agencies

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