Markets closed higher for the second day on Friday, led by advances in IT, technology, and capital goods stocks and fresh foreign capital inflows.
After temporarily falling in late afternoon trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex recovered quickly and rose 178.58 points or 0.25 percent to 72,026.15. It jumped 308.91 points or 0.42 percent to 72,156.48.
The Nifty gained 52.20 points or 0.24 percent to 21,710.80.
Larsen & Toubro, Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL Technologies, Hindustan Unilever, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, and Wipro were the top gainers on Sensex.
Among the laggards were Nestle India, Asian Paints, JSW Steel, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and HDFC Bank.
As per a monthly survey released on Friday, India’s services sector grew at a three-month high in December, boosted by favorable economic conditions and sold demand trends.
The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Services PMI Business Activity Index increased from 56.9 in November to 59 in December, indicating the most dramatic increase in output since September.
In Asian markets, Tokyo finished higher, while Seoul, Shanghai, and Hong Kong finished lower.
European markets were trading in the red.
On Thursday, the US stock market close was generally negative.
Brent crude advanced 0.94 percent to USD 78.32 per barrel.
According to the exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought securities worth Rs 1,513.41 crore on Thursday.
On Thursday, the BSE benchmark increased 490.97 points or 0.69 percent to 71,847.57, while the Nifty went up 141.25 points or 0.66 percent to 21,658.60.
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