Markets snap three-session losing streak; Sensex ends 173 points higher

New Delhi: Snapping three-session losing streak, Sensex ended higher on Monday as gains in power, metal and auto stocks offset losses in banking counters.

The 30-share index settled 173.44 points or 0.46 per cent higher at 38,050.78. Likewise, the NSE Nifty ended 68.70 points or 0.61 per cent up at 11,247.10.

Major gainers in the Sensex pack were NTPC, Bajaj Auto, Tech Mahindra, ONGC, Maruti, Titan, Asian Paint, LT, Powergrid, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank and Tata Steel, rising upto 7.92 percent. On the other hand major losers in the Sensex pack were SBI, Bharti Airtel, RIL, Sun Pharma, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank, falling upto 1.73 percent.

Bourses in Asia, barring Japan, closed significantly higher. Japan’s Nikkei slumped after the country’s GDP shrank 7.8 per cent in the April-June period compared with the previous quarter.

International crude oil benchmark Brent was trading 0.40 per cent higher at USD 45.13 per barrel.

The rupee pared most of its intra-day gains to settle marginally higher by 2 paise at 74.88 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday.

On Friday, the 30-share Sensex had fallen 433.15 points or 1.13 per cent to close at 37,877.34; while the 50-share Nifty had tumbled 122.05 points or 1.08 per cent to end at 11,178.40.