Mumbai, March 18 The benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty in the Indian stock market ended nearly 1 per cent higher on Wednesday, extending their winning streak to the third day in a row, amid a slight drop in crude oil prices and a firm trend in global markets.
A rally in IT stocks also contributed to the positive trend in the domestic markets.
The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 633.29 points or 0.83 per cent to close at 76,704.13. During the day, it soared 929.38 points or 1.22 per cent to 77,000.22.
The 50-share NSE Nifty surged 196.65 points or 0.83 per cent to end at 23,777.80.
Among the 30 companies in the Sensex, Eternal, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, Adani Ports, Tata Consultancy Services, and Axis Bank were among the major gainers.
NTPC, Hindustan Unilever, Sun Pharma, and HDFC Bank were among the laggards.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dipped by 0.10 per cent to USD 103.3 per barrel.
In Asian markets, South Korea's benchmark Kospi jumped by 5 per cent, and Japan's Nikkei 225 index climbed by 2.87 per cent. The Shanghai SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index also ended higher.
Markets in Europe were trading positively.
The US market ended higher on Tuesday.
"The domestic markets continued their recovery, supported by opportunistic buying after the recent sell-off. The rebound was broad-based, driven by a combination of short covering and value buying, with leadership from the IT, real estate, and auto sectors, along with strength in mid and small-cap stocks," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,741.22 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data. Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs), however, bought stocks worth Rs 5,225.32 crore.
On Tuesday, the Sensex jumped 567.99 points, or 0.75 per cent, to settle at 76,070.84. The Nifty climbed 172.35 points, or 0.74 per cent, to end at 23,581.15.