Sensex extends gains in volatile trade

Mumbai: The benchmark Sensex rose by 73 points in early trade on July 23 on the back of sustained foreign fund inflows and increased buying by retail investors. The 30-share index, which had rallied 322.79 points in the previous session, gained another 73.40 points, or 0.25 per cent, to 28,578.33, with oil and gas, consumer druable, metal, healthcare, power and capital goods sectors trading in the positive zone with gains up to 1.26 per cent.

The NSE Nifty also inched higher by 18.45 points, or 0.21 per cent, to 8,651.95. Brokers said sentiments remained upbeat on hopes of passage of the key GST bill and a firming trend at other Asian markets influenced trading sentiments.

Optimistic buying by participants in some bluechip companies ahead of quarterly earnings, too supported the upside, they said. Stocks of Wipro Ltd, country's third-biggest software services provider, was trading 0.79 per cent higher at Rs 590 ahead of quarterly earnings.

Among other Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei rose 0.50 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.10 per cent in early trade on July 23. China's Shanghai Composite index was also up 0.18 per cent in morning trade. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.38 per cent lower on 22 July.