sensex today: Sensex rises for 3rd straight session, ends 379 pts higher; Nifty tops 17,800

Domestic equity benchmarks closed near the day’s high after an extended weekend on Tuesday as investors rejoiced in softening consumer inflation that eased for a third straight month in July. The benchmark indices settled higher for the sixth session, equalling their longest winning streak so far in this year.

The 30-share Sensex advanced 379.43 points to end at 59,842.21. Its broader peer, Nifty50, also ended the session comfortably above the 17,800 mark, led by auto realty and oil and gas scrips.

Nifty Auto was the top sectoral gainer today, rising 2.54 per cent, with

and M&M outperforming peers. The auto majors rose over 2 per cent each. , , , HDFC, , and were among other top gainers from the 30-share pack, rising between 1-2 per cent each.

Bharti Airtel, , and ended with cuts.

Market at a

-HDFC AMC soars 12% after a 5.6% equity stake changed hands on BSE

-LIC jumps 2% after Macquarie upgrades stock to ‘Outperform’ after Q1 results

-Hero Moto shares also advanced 2% on a strong Q1 show

-Ujjivan SFB rose nearly 7% after it hiked rates by 30-150 bps across 3 tenures

-Adani Ports jumped over 4% after the co’s subsidiary signed an agreement to acquire ICD Tumb (

) from .

“The easing of inflationary pressures has encouraged domestic investors to remain optimistic about the pace of economic recovery. Better-than-expected CPI numbers, aided by a slower increase in food and fuel prices, may limit the pace of rate hikes by the RBI,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at

.

Broader markets also outperformed benchmarks, with Nifty Midcap advancing 1.5 per cent and Smallcap adding 0.88 per cent.

In the Asian market, the Chinese central bank surprised the market by cutting its interest rates after a weak set of economic data. Following that, oil prices slumped on demand worries.