Sensex snaps 3-day fall, Nifty above 8350 as SBI, ONGC rise

Mumbai: Rebounding from over one-month lows, benchmark Sensex on December 10 closed 34 points higher to end at 27,831.10, snapping its three-day losing trend, on gains in SBI and ONGC shares, amid a firm European trend.

The wide-based 50-issue NSE Nifty also recovered by 14.95 points, or 0.18 per cent, to close at 8,355.65. While session was markedly choppy in the absence of strong local cues, buying in key counters supported Sensex and Nifty. Two-tier stocks attracted buying from retail investors, helping their indices outperform broader benchmarks.

Rise in SBI, ONGC, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Dr Reddy's Lab, Cipla, Hero MotoCorp and Tata Power helped markets end in the positive terrain. However, fall in L&T, RIL, HUL, Bajaj Auto, BHEL and Gail India capped the rise. The BSE 30-share barometer resumed lower in line with mixed cues from Asian peers and moved erratically in a range of 27,905.25 and 27,710.03 before concluding at 27,831.10, showing a rise of 34.09 points or 0.12 per cent.

In previous three sessions, it had tumbled 765.81 points or 2.68 per cent. "PSU banking counters remained upbeat throughout the session...," Jayant Manglik, President-retail distribution, Religare Securities. Shares in jewellery makers surged on hopes government will announce changes to gold-import rules for trading houses.

Meanwhile, Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 221.52 crore yesterday as per provisional data. Asian markets ended mixed, tracking an uninspiring finish on Wall Street overnight triggered by global growth concerns. Fresh political uncertainty in Greece, a rout in oil prices and a selloff in Chinese shares in the previous session continued to cast their shadow.

"Outcome of the Greece crisis and the way they come to an agreement over the credit line instead of the bailout, would drive the market direction in the short term," said Rakesh Goyal, Senior Vice President, Bonanza Portfolio. Key indices from China, Hong Kong and Singapore closed with gains while those from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan finished with losses. Indices in Germany, the UK and France were up by 0.29 per cent to 0.79 per cent.