Sensex rallies 304 points; Nifty tops 11,700

MUMBAI: Equity benchmark Sensex rallied 304 points on Wednesday, tracking gains in index-heavyweights Reliance Industries, HDFC twins and Infosys.

After opening on a weak note, the 30-share index gained ground to end 304.38 points or 0.77 per cent higher at 39,878.95.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty jumped 76.45 points or 0.66 per cent to close at 11,738.85.

Titan was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, climbing over 4 per cent, followed by Bajaj Auto, Maruti, Reliance Industries, ONGC and UltraTech Cement.

On the other hand, Bajaj Finance, PowerGrid, Tata Steel, NTPC and Sun Pharma were among the laggards.

"Market recovered quickly in morning trade and traded in the green throughout the day led by autos ahead of the RBI policy," said S Ranganathan, Head of Research at LKP Securities.

The newly-constituted MPC of the Reserve Bank began its three-day deliberations earlier in the day.

The decision of the rate-setting panel will be announced on October 9.

Although the broader market was a bit lacklustre, sustained buying in cement and select pharma counters was seen during the day, he added.

According to traders, Indian investors are also eyeing the possibility of a domestic fiscal package announcement in the near term.

Meanwhile, bourses in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Seoul ended on a mixed note, while Shanghai was closed for a holiday.

Stock exchanges in Europe were trading on a negative note in early deals.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.59 per cent lower at USD 41.97 per barrel.

In the forex market, the rupee strengthened by 13 paise to settle at 73.33 against the US dollar.