The benchmark BSE Sensex ended higher by over 200 points as investors remained bullish on the outcome of a possible victory for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in Gujarat Assembly elections.

The 30-share BSE index Sensex ended higher by 205.49 points or 0.62 per cent at 33,455.79 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty closed up 56.6 points or 0.55 per cent at 10,322.25.

This is its highest closing for Sensex since November 29, when it had closed at 33,602.76.

Among BSE sectoral indices, IT index gained the most by 1.00 per cent, followed by TECk 0.88 per cent, healthcare 0.69 per cent and auto 0.65 per cent. On the other hand, oil & gas index was down 0.23 per cent, infrastructure 0.19 per cent and realty 0.13 per cent.

Top five Sensex gainers were TCS (+2.35%), M&M (+2.16%), Lupin (+2.15%), HDFC (+2.14%) and Wipro (+2.12%), wile the major losers were NTPC (-1.36%), ONGC (-0.78%), Reliance (-0.55%), HUL (-0.48%) and Adani Ports (-0.42%).

Shares of Unitech surged as much as 20 per cent after the NCLT authorised the government to appoint its 10 nominees on the board of the realty firm.

Max India tanked nearly 5 per cent on Monday after the Delhi government cancelled the licence of Max Hospital-Shalimar Bagh. Max India is the holding company of Max Healthcare.

Shares of IL&FS Engineering and Construction Company Ltd were locked at 5 per cent upper circuit on Monday as the company has won a Rs 216 crore order from GAIL for constructing a 157.8 km pipeline.

Gujarat elections

Markets are hoping for a big success by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the Assembly elections in Gujarat, with tens of thousands voting in the first stage of the polls on Saturday.

Also read:New catalysts in Gujarat's chemistry

A victory would help boost the government's re-election prospects during general elections in 2019 and reinforce its reform agenda, although analysts said it was already being priced into markets, making the margin of a win crucial to further boost shares.

Also read:Bookies’ odds favour BJP wins in Gujarat, Himachal

Three recent big polls have predicted a victory for Modi's party, but with a greatly reduced majority. "If BJP wins, it's definitely good for the markets, but unless they win by a landslide like they did in (in the northern state of) Uttar Pradesh and surprise everyone, markets (NSE index) should remain rangebound in the 10,000-10,500 levels," said R.K. Gupta, managing director at Taurus Asset Management Company.

Optimistic buying by participants ahead of industrial production and inflation numbers to be released later this week too supported the rally.

Early trade

The Sensex advanced by 195 points in early trade and the Nifty50 also went past the 10,300-mark.

The 30-share BSE index Sensex jumped 194.68 points, or 0.58 per cent, to 33,444.98, with realty, oil and gas, PSU, metal, banking and auto stocks driving the uptrend. The gauge had gained 653.12 points in the previous two sessions.

The 50-share NSE index Nifty was up 46.15 points, or 0.44 per cent, at 10,311.80.

As per provisional data, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 1,243 crore on Friday.

Asian shares

Asian stocks were slightly higher with MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan up 0.2 per cent, staying above a recent two-month trough of 542.27 points amid optimism about global growth after the strong US payrolls data on Friday.

Japan’s Nikkei added 0.1 per cent, while Australian shares climbed 0.1 per cent. Chinese shares opened firm following solid trade data on Friday, with the blue-chip CSI 300 index up 0.1 per cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.3 per cent.

On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average index rose 74 points, or 0.31 per cent, to 24,285. The S&P500 index gained 9.82 points, or 0.37 per cent, to 2,646. The Nasdaq Composite index added 21.67 points, or 0.32 percent, to 6,834.

(With inputs from Agencies)

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