The Sensex and Nifty ended higher on Monday, posting their fourth straight session of gains, as investors awaited key central bank meetings in the United States and Japan this week for clues on global monetary policies.
The broader NSE index ended 28.55 points or 0.33 per cent higher at 8,808.40, after rising as much as 0.51 per cent earlier in the session, while the benchmark BSE index closed up 35.47 points or 0.12 per cent at 28,634.50, after gaining up to 0.40 per cent earlier in the day.
The Nifty IT index ended up 0.62 per cent led by Tata Consultancy Services, which gained as much as 2.76 per cent to record its biggest intraday percentage jump in over a month.
Barring FMCG, all other BSE sectoral indices ended in the positive zone. Among them, realty index gained the most by 1.6 per cent, metal 1.33 per cent, infrastructure 0.96 per cent and PSU 0.88 per cent, while FMCG index was down 0.43 per cent.
Top five Sensex gainers were TCS (+1.96%), ICICI Bank (+1.61%), Adani Ports (+1.6%), Coal India (+1.17%) and ONGC (+1.07%), while the major losers were Maruti (-1.48%), Bajaj Auto (-1.15%), Axis Bank (-1.11%), Hero MotoCorp (-0.9%) and ITC (-0.86%).
FII buying
Positivity in Asian markets along with foreign institutional investors coming back to buying mode helped prop up the market, said Anand James, chief market strategist, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services.
Overseas investors who have bought shares worth a net $181.36 million so far this month helped Indian shares gain in six out of 10 sessions in September.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 1.2 per cent ahead of the Fed meeting on September 20-21 and the Bank of Japan policy meeting on Wednesday.
The Federal Reserve could give a clear signal of an interest rate rise to come even if it follows market expectations for a pause this month.
Global markets
Asian shares advanced on Monday ahead of central bank meetings in the United States and Japan this week, while oil prices bounced on talk of an OPEC deal on output and reports of fighting around Libyan oil ports.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.8 per cent, though that remained well short of recent one-year peaks.