September 02 (Siliguri Chronicle) – Benchmark stock indices opened higher on Tuesday, continuing their upward momentum from the previous session as positive economic data lifted investor sentiment.
In early trade, the BSE Sensex jumped 207 points to 80,571, while the NSE Nifty rose nearly 61 points to 24,686.
From the Sensex pack, Reliance Industries, Eternal, NTPC, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance and Hindustan Unilever were the top gainers.
On the other hand, Asian Paints, Infosys, Mahindra & Mahindra and Trent were among the major losers.
India’s manufacturing sector recorded its sharpest improvement in operating conditions in over 17 years this August, supported by stronger production efficiency and steady demand, a monthly survey showed on Monday.
The seasonally adjusted HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) inched up to 59.3 in August from 59.1 in July, marking the strongest reading in 17-and-a-half years.
In PMI terms, a score above 50 signals expansion, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.
Across Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi and Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded higher, while China’s Shanghai Composite and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped into the red.
US markets remained shut on Monday on account of the Labour Day holiday.
On Monday, the Sensex surged 554.84 points, or 0.70 per cent, to close at 80,364.49, while the Nifty gained 198.20 points, or 0.81 per cent, to end at 24,625.05.
“Yesterday’s rally was driven by a better-than-expected GDP growth of 7.8 per cent for Q1 (April–June), which reinforced optimism about India’s growth outlook,” said Hariprasad K, Research Analyst and Founder of Livelong Wealth.
In global commodities, Brent crude rose 0.43 per cent to USD 68.44 a barrel.
Meanwhile, exchange data showed that Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth ₹1,429.71 crore on Monday, while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) made net purchases of ₹4,344.93 crore.
