Sensex rises 140 points ahead of election outcome, Nifty also climbs 29 points

Benchmark indices opened flat on Wednesday ahead of Lok Sabha Election 2019 counting on May 23 but ended on a positive note after jumping 140 points supported by gains in banking and auto stocks.

Top Sensex gainers in morning trade include Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, ICICI Bank, RIL, HDFC twins, Tata Motors, ONGC, Infosys, Maruti and Kotak Bank, rising up to 1.38 per cent.

IndusInd Bank was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying 4.84 per cent, followed by Sun Pharma, Bajaj Auto, Bharti Airtel, Coal India, Tata Motors, SBI, ICICI Bank, Hero MotoCorp, ONGC, HDFC, Vedanta, L&T, Kotak Bank, Maruti and Axis Bank, ending up to 2.92 per cent higher.

On the other hand, Yes Bank, ITC, PowerGrid, TCS and HUL closed in the red, slipping up to 2.34 per cent.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty rose 28.80 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 11,737.90.

“Post the exit polls, one can say that the markets seem to have priced in a second term for the Modi government. However, lack of majority for BJP will prove to be a dampener for market mood. Hung elections remain a near term threat for the markets.

“Post elections, the focus will revert back to the fundamental issues such as earnings growth and increase in capex,” said Hemang Jani, Head - Advisory, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Unabated foreign fund inflows too buoyed market mood here, traders said.

Meanwhile, the Indian rupee appreciated marginally to 69.68 against the US dollar. Brent crude, the global benchmark, was trading at USD 71.72 per barrel, higher by 0.64 per cent. Globally, trading sentiment remained risk-averse amid the US-China trade dispute.

(With inputs from PTI)