Sensex rebounds 453 points; IT stocks shine

MUMBAI: Equity benchmark Sensex rebounded 453 points on Tuesday, tracking strong recovery in IT and banking stocks amid encouraging cues from European markets.

After gyrating 968 points in a volatile session, the 30-share BSE index ended 452.73 points or 0.99 per cent higher at 46,006.69. On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty climbed 137.90 points or 1.03 per cent to 13,466.30.

HCL Tech was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying around 5 per cent, followed by Tech Mahindra, Infosys, PowerGrid, Sun Pharma, L&T and Nestle India.

On the other hand, Kotak Bank, HDFC, Bajaj Finance and IndusInd Bank were among the laggards.

Domestic equities recovered sharply from the day's low in a volatile trading day mainly aided by strong buying in IT stocks, said Binod Modi, Head-Strategy at Reliance Securities.

Investors once again started focusing on safe counters which are considered to be resilient from pandemic and IT, pharma, telecom, FMCG and chemicals were in focus, he noted.

"While concerns of new strain of coronavirus do not augur well for the markets globally, India still looks to be better placed compared to others.

However, markets are likely to remain volatile in coming days until clarity emerges about new virus strains and efficacy of ongoing vaccinations," he asserted.

European markets witnessed sharp recovery after German pharmaceutical company BioNTech said it was confident that its coronavirus vaccine would work against the new UK variant.

The variant, detected mainly in London and the southeast of England in recent weeks, has sparked concern worldwide because of signs that it may spread more easily.

While there is no indication it causes more serious illness, numerous countries in Europe and beyond have restricted travel from the UK as a result.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Seoul, Hong Kong and Tokyo ended in the red. Meanwhile, the global oil benchmark Brent crude futures slipped 1.67 per cent to USD 50.06 per barrel.