Sensex jumps over 550 points as crude prices ease; Nifty above 17,700

A sharp fall in crude oil prices and firm global market mood gave a leg up to domestic equity indices in Thursday's trade.

Asian stocks gained, tracking a rally in US equities overnight, while oil prices tumbled to over seven-month lows on demand concerns following downbeat Chinese trade data. India benefits from a fall in prices as it brings down imported inflation.

At 9.50 am, the BSE Sensex was trading 530 points or 0.90 per cent higher at 59,551. Nifty50 was trading at 17,767, up 144 points or 0.82 per cent.

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at said that there is a clear message from the market now. "Despite high valuation, global headwinds from elevated inflation, slowing global economy and an ultra-hawkish Fed, the domestic market has been surprisingly resilient. The tape is signaling momentum and bullishness. Investors should not 'fight the tape' and take a contrarian view, at least in the near-term," he said.

The buy on dips strategy has worked very well in this rally and it makes sense to continue with the strategy, Vijaykumar added.

According to him, domestic economy-facing segments such as banks, autos, capital goods, telecom and FMCG will continue to do well. If the rally is to sustain from the current levels, it will need support from the beaten-down IT segment, which looks good from the valuation perspective, Vijaykumar said.

Among Sensex stocks, rose 2.27 per cent to Rs 3,476.50. , , and up 1.96 per cent, 1.64 per cent, 1.35 per cent and 1.30 per cent, respectively. M&M, and surged 1.19 per cent, 1.14 per cent and 1.09 per cent, respectively.

Sectorally, the Nifty IT index surged 1.13 per cent, while Nifty PSU rose 1.07 per cent. Nifty Midcap50 and Smallcap50 increased 0.59 per cent and 1.11 per cent, respectively.

The dollar index, which tracks the movement of the greenback against a basket of six major world currencies, fell 0.06 per cent to 109.77 level.