Sensex rises 180 points in early trade, Nifty at 11,300

New Delhi: Markets opened in the positive zone on Tuesday with the Sensex rising 180 points in early trade led by gains in index heavy-weights.

The BSE Sensex rose 189.50 points or 0.50 percent to 38,240.28 in early trade while the NSE Nifty rose 53.60 points or 0.48 percent to 11,300.70.

Major gainers in the Sensex pack were NTPC, RIL, ONGC, ICICI Bank, Titan, HDFC, M&M, Bajaj Finserve, Infosys, Bajaj Finance, Kotak Bank and Ultrachem, rising upto 1.26 percent. On the other hand, major losers were Powergrid, Tata Steel, Tech Mahindra, HCL Tech, IndusInd Bank and HDFC Bank, falling upto 0.81 percent.

In the previous session on Monday, 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.

Among Asian peers, MSCI`s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan gained 0.19%, to sit not far short of its pre-pandemic late January high. Japan`s Nikkei dipped 0.52%, while most markets traded in a narrow band with Chinese blue chips dropping 0.25%. The Australian benchmark index rose 0.12%. E-Mini futures for the S&P 500 were flat, a Reuters report said.

The Nasdaq surged to a record high close on Monday and the S&P 500 approached its own record level, with both indexes lifted by technology stocks, Reuters added.