Markets snap 4-day rout on value buying, exit polls

Shortcovering

- First half was sluggish

- Healthy buying in select heavyweights triggered a sharp recovery in the latter half

- BSE Sensex closed 581.34 pts higher at 53,424.09

- NSE Nifty recovered 150.30 pts to 16,013.45

- Sun Pharma top gainer

- TCS, NTPC, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, Dr Reddy's, UltraTech Cement and Infosys gained

- Tata Steel, PowerGrid, Titan, Nestle India, RIL and SBI in the red

Mumbai: Market benchmarks ratcheted higher in a see-saw session on Tuesday after four days of steep declines as investors accumulated recently-battered IT, pharma and finance stocks even as the Ukraine crisis remained an overhang. World equities were mixed as participants tracked Russia's intensifying attack on Ukraine and the cascade of sanctions against Moscow. The bias was negative in the first half in continuation to prevailing trend. However, healthy buying in select heavyweights triggered a sharp recovery in the latter half as well as recovery seen in global markets.

The 30-share BSE Sensex opened on a weak note and tumbled 581.93 points or 1.10 per cent to 52,260.82 during the day amid firming oil prices and relentless selling by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). Overcoming bouts of volatility, the index gained momentum in the last hour of trade to close 581.34 points or 1.10 per cent higher at 53,424.09. On similar lines, the broader NSE Nifty darted up 150.30 points or 0.95 per cent to 16,013.45 points.

Investors' wealth on Tuesday jumped by over Rs2.51 lakh crore, in tandem with a sharp recovery in equities after four days of heavy declines. With the recovery in equities, the market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies jumped Rs2,51,663.79 crore to reach Rs 2,43,62,494.83 crore.