Zee Media Bureau
India`s stock markets gained 2 percent on Thursday, their biggest single-day percentage gain in seven-and-a-half months, as upbeat global equity markets sparked a wave of bargain-hunting ahead of the expiry of derivative contracts.
The benchmark BSE Sensex ended up 2.01 percent, while the broader Nifty closed higher 2.02 percent, their biggest single-day percentage gain since Jan. 15.
Sentiment was also supported by comments from New York Fed President William Dudley on Wednesday that the prospect of a September rate hike "seems less compelling" than it was only weeks ago, given the threat posed to the U.S. economy by the recent market turmoil.
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A positive close for Wall Street and some amount of buying on the last day of the August futures and options contracts helped the market move higher, said Alex Mathews, head of research at Geojit BNP Paribas.
Mathews said he expects some choppiness in the second half of trade as traders are expected to churn positions.
Financial stocks bounced back from losses in the previous session. Housing Development Finance Corp gained 7.4 percent, ICICI Bank rose 2 percent and Kotak Mahindra Bank added 4 percent.
IT stocks were also trading higher, with Infosys up 2 percent and HCL Tech rising 2.5 percent.
Pharma stocks too edged up. Sun Pharma rose 2.7 percent, Lupin gained 3.1 percent and Cipla climbed 4.1 percent.
Cairn India shares gained 7.2 percent on higher crude prices and cheaper valuation.
With Agency Inputs
