RIL, banks lift Sensex 246 pts, Nifty tops 16,300; Rupee ends at 79.95/$

CLOSING BELL: The steady depreciation in the value of the rupee against the US dollar is likely to prove expensive for corporate India

CLOSING BELL

Stock market highlights: Domestic benchmark indices rose in the fag-end of a choppy session, amid gains in PSU and select private banks, financial services, and select heavyweight stocks. The S&P BSE Sensex surged 246 points higher to close at 54,768, while the Nifty50 reclaimed 16,300-mark to end at 16,341. The index was 62 points higher at the end of the session. The indices were up 0.45 per cent and 0.38 per cent, respectively.

Axis Bank, IndusInd Bank, M&M, Tata Steel, Ultratech Cement, Bajaj Finserv, Bharti Airtel, SBI, Coal India, Eicher Motors, and ICICI Bank were the top rulers, up between 1-2.3 per cent. On the flipside, ONGC, Nestle India, HDFC Life, Sun Pharma, Tata Consumer, Cipla, Hero MotoCorp, and SBI Life ended lower, down up to 2.6 per cent.

The broader markets, however, outperformed the frontline indices through the day. The BSE MidCap and Smallcap indicies settled up to 0.8 per cent up.

Rupee at 80
The rupee breached the 80-mark against the dollar on Tuesday. The steady depreciation in the value of the rupee against the US dollar is likely to prove expensive for corporate India. READ MORE

Global cues

European stocks were choppy on Tuesday as the relief rally seen in the previous two sessions lost some momentum. The pan-European Stoxx 600 index gained 0.89 per cent in mid-morning trade amid reports the European Central Bank (ECB) may opt for 50 basis points rate hike on Thursday. This comes after Euro zone inflation hit 8.6 per cent year-on-year in June, final figures confirmed on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, US stock futures indicated flat to positive start later tonight after a lower end on Monday. Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei added 0.6 per cent, while South Korea's Kospi slipped about 0.2 per cent.