Sensex climbs 309 points in opening trade; Nifty rises 72 points to 16,702

Sensex climbs 309.91 points to 55,860.21 in opening trade; Nifty rises 72.1 points to 16,702.55

Benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty surged higher in the opening trade on Monday, helped by heavy buying in IT counters amid a mixed trend in Asian markets.

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Rising for the fifth straight session, the BSE benchmark Sensex jumped 309.91 points to 55,860.21. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty also climbed 72.1 points to 16,702.55.

In the 30-share Sensex pack, Infosys, HDFC Bank, Tech Mahindra, Wipro and State Bank of India were the major gainers.

In contrast, Hindustan Unilever Limited, Mahindra & Mahindra, Bajaj Finance and Dr Reddy's Laboratories were among the laggards.

On Friday, the 30-share BSE Sensex had settled 85.91 points or 0.15 per cent higher at 55,550.30. The broader NSE Nifty gained 35.55 points or 0.21 per cent to close at 16,630.45.

Bourses in Hong Kong and Shanghai were quoting lower, while Tokyo was trading higher during the mid-session deals.

Stock exchanges in the US settled lower on Friday.

Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 2.73 per cent to USD 109.7 a barrel.

Foreign institutional investors continued their selling spree in Indian markets as they offloaded shares worth ₹2,263.90 crore on a net basis on Friday, according to exchange data.

"As the new week starts investor sentiments will again shift towards the ongoing tussle between Ukraine and Russia," said Mohit Nigam, Head - PMS, Hem Securities.

V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said, "The most important event this week from the market perspective would be the outcome of the Fed meet expected on Wednesday"