The Sensex and Nifty ended higher on Thursday as investors picked beaten down counters, including technology stocks that lost ground on disappointing quarterly results from software services exporters Infosys Ltd and Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.

The broader NSE index closed up 32.9 points or 0.36 per cent at 9,136.40, posting its first gain in six sessions.

The benchmark BSE index ended 85.82 points or 0.29 per cent higher at 29,422.39.

Among BSE sectoral indices, realty index was the star-performer and was up 2.14 per cent, followed by consumer durables 1.23 per cent, IT 0.99 per cent and TECk 0.96 per cent. On the other hand, banking index was down 0.53 per cent, oil & gas 0.25 per cent, power 0.17 per cent and healthcare 0.14 per cent.

Top five Sensex gainers were GAIL (+2.02%), Adani Ports (+1.83%), HDFC (+1.82%), Asian Paints (+1.37%) and Maruti (-1.17%), while the major losers were ICICI Bank (-2.9%), Axis Bank (-2.26%), Sun Pharma (-1.28%), Power Grid (-1.21%) and NTPC (-0.97%).

NSE index

The NSE index has fallen about 1.7 per cent since it hit a record high on April 5.

However, an official forecast of an average monsoon in 2017 and expectations of positive quarterly results are expected to push markets higher in the near-term, said analysts.

“An extended period of consolidation over the last one week has rendered stocks slightly cheaper compared to previous month levels. That may have attracted some bargain hunting,” said Anand James, chief market strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Infosys Ltd, which lost about 5 per cent on a lower-than-expected revenue guidance, was up 0.96 per cent, while Tech Mahindra Ltd rose 1.6 per cent, rebounding from five days of declines.

“Markets are now able to look beyond IT stocks, which have been a slight disappointment,” he said.

State-run lenders too recovered from recent falls, with the Nifty PSU bank index gaining as much as 1.5 per cent. It fell 1.7 per cent in the previous session.

Private sector lender YES Bank Ltd lost as much as 5.3 per cent after it reported a 66 per cent surge in provisions for bad loans. ICICI Bank Ltd was down 2.9 per cent and Axis Bank Ltd 2.6 per cent.

Global markets

Asian stocks erased early losses and edged higher on Thursday as signs of resilience emerged in some markets, while steadying commodity prices - especially for oil - prompted some bargain hunting among investors.

But with the outcome of the French presidential elections due at the weekend, markets are set to trade in well worn trading ranges, barring any major data surprises in Asia.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1 per cent after declining 0.5 per cent in early trades. Gains in Chinese and Japanese stocks pulled the broader market higher.

The S&P 500 and Dow closed lower and the Nasdaq advanced on Wednesday as investors digested the latest round of earnings, while a drop in oil prices weighed on the energy sector.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 119.13 points or 0.58 per cent to 20,404.15, the S&P 500 lost 4.03 points or 0.17 per cent to 2,338.16 and the Nasdaq Composite added 13.56 points or 0.23 per cent to 5,863.03.

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