Markets surge in late trades

Markets staged a smart recovery towards the end of the day, thanks to buying in oil and FMCG stocks.

Markets on Wednesday opened on a weak note, mirroring cues from global peers. However, the Sensex started recovering almost immediately and rebounded into the green within some time. From there on, the index was subdued and traded almost flat.

The Sensex started gaining again as European markets saw a positive start. However, in the last few minutes of trade, the Sensex zoomed 351 points from the low to touch a high of 17,725 as market heavyweight, Reliance, gained.

The Sensex finally ended at 17,701 - up 167 points. The Nifty ended at 5,313 - up 56 points.

Asian markets were however, in red. The Hang Seng dropped 0.5% to 20,128. Nikkei slumped 2% while Shanghai Composite tumbled over 1%.

European markets are trading in green. CAC and DAX are up 0.7% each. FTSE has added 1% to 4,959.

BSE FMCG index surged in late trades, ending up 1% at 3,230. Oil & gas index was up 1.6% at 10,874. Auto, realty and power indices also advanced. However, the IT index ended marginally in red at 5,319.

ITC jumped 2.6% to Rs 305. Maruti Suzuki and Reliance Communications gained 2.4% each to Rs 1,423 and Rs 198, respectively.

Market heavyweight, Reliance, added 2% to Rs 1,087.

Reliance Infrastructure and Mahindra & Mahindra added 1.7% each to Rs 1,201 and Rs 625, respectively. Hindustan Unilever, ICICI Bank, Sterlite and HDFC were up over 1% each.

Tata Motors, ONGC, ACC, NTPC and BHEL were the other major gainers in the market.

However, Wipro slipped 1.2% to Rs 385. Bharti Airtel and Cipla were down 1% each at Rs 263 and Rs 338, respectively.

BSE market breadth was negative. Out of 2,979 stocks traded, 1,598 advanced while 1,266 declined.

VALUE TOPPERS...

HPCL topped the value chart with a turnover of Rs 323.29 cr, followed by IOC (Rs 137.29 cr), BPCL (Rs 134.45 cr), Aban Offshore (Rs 127.89 cr) and Reliance (Rs 112.39 cr).