HDFC twins & IT stocks lift Sensex 191 pts, Nifty above 10,700; RIL, Axis Bank dip 3-4%

The market closed at three-month high on Monday, the final trading day of the month, driven by HDFC Group, technology and FMCG stocks.

Liberalising the norms for extra commercial borrowing by the RBI, correction in crude oil prices and positive global cues also boosted sentiment.

The 50-share NSE Nifty ended above 10,700 levels for the first time since February 2, rising 47.10 points to 10,739.40.

The index rallied 6.2 percent in the month of April, following more than 8 percent correction in previous two months.

"Markets have relatively done better than the global markets for the month of April. This is likely to continue," VK Sharma, Head Private Client Group & Capital Market Strategy at HDFC Securities said.

Equity markets are likely to open higher and bond yields are likely to soften on Wednesday, according to him.

The 30-share BSE Sensex rallied 190.66 points to close at 35,160.36, but the gains were capped by sharp correction in Reliance Industries, Axis Bank and ICICI Bank.

The Indian equity markets will remain shut on Tuesday for Maharashtra Day.

On the global front, Asian stocks closed higher on receding geopolitical tensions, robust earnings and economic data. Hong Kong's Hang Seng closed up 1.74 percent while South Korea's Kospi was up 0.92 percent and Australia's ASX 200 gained half a percent. Chinese and Japanese markets were shut today.

European markets, too, were higher as investors digested merger news and focused on earnings. France's CAC, Germany's DAX and Britain's FTSE were up 0.2-0.6 percent at the time of writing this article.

Brent crude and US oil futures fell a percent each after rising rig count in the United States pointed to higher production.

Back home, all sectoral indices ended in the green today. Nifty FMCG, IT, PSU Bank and Realty indices gained up to 1.7 percent.

Housing finance companies, real estate and PSU banks rallied after getting access to cheaper funds in overseas markets following the liberalisation of norms for external commercial borrowings by the Reserve Bank of India.

Housing finance company HDFC was up 1.6 percent after reporting better-than-expected 39 percent year-on-year increase in Q4 profit while Kotak Mahindra Bank rose 1.9 percent on stable March quarter earnings and asset quality improvement.

Reliance Industries declined 3.3 percent after March quarter operating margin and Jio profit numbers missed analyst expectations.

TCS, HDFC Bank, Yes Bank, L&T, Infosys, HUL, Vedanta, SBI and Tata Motors among others gained 1-4 percent whereas Axis Bank, UPL, ICICI Bank, Bharti Infratel, Eicher Motors and GAIL fell up to 4 percent.

The broader markets outperformed frontliners, with the Nifty Midcap index rising 0.84 percent. About 855 shares advanced against 713 declining shares on the NSE.

PC Jeweller plunged 18.5 percent as the news of share buyback failed to soothen investors' sentiment. The stock was down more than 30 percent from its day's high. In morning especially after the announcement that the board members will consider share buyback along with earnings next month, the stock had rallied nearly 19 percent.

Opto Circuits jumped 10 percent after the medical device maker turned profitable for the quarter ended March 2018 while Automobile Corporation of Goa lost 8 percent on reporting a 67 percent YoY fall in Q4 profit.

InterGlobe Aviation was down half a percent after the company accepted resignation of Aditya Ghosh, President & WTD and appointed Rahul Bhatia as CEO.

Repco Home Finance, DHFL, Marico, Vijaya Bank, Mishra Dhatu, Balrampur Chini, Dhampur Sugar, CG Power, Indiabulls Real Estate, Indiabulls Ventures, Bombay Dyeing and Jet Airways gained up to 8 percent. Can Fin Homes, Minda Corporation, IDBI Bank and HDIL fell up to 5 percent.