Sensex jumps 214 points in early trade; Nifty tops 17,220 — M&M, HDFC, PowerGrid, Titan, Sun Pharma, Maruti, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries top gainers

Equity benchmark Sensex jumped over 214 points in early trade on Thursday, tracking gains in index majors HDFC twins, Reliance Industries and Maruti amid largely positive cues from Asian peers.

The 30-share index was trading 214.43 points or 0.37 per cent higher at 57,899.22 in initial deals. Similarly, the Nifty rose 53.95 points or 0.31 per cent to 17,220.85.

M&M was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 2.38 per cent. HDFC, PowerGrid, Titan, Sun Pharma, Maruti, HCL Tech and Reliance Industries, were among the other gainers.

On the other hand, L&T, ICICI Bank, Nestle India, Axis Bank and Tech Mahindra were among the losers.

In the previous session, the 30-share BSE Sensex rallied 619.92 points or 1.09 per cent to close at 57,684.79. Similarly, the NSE Nifty surged 183.70 points or 1.08 per cent to 17,166.90.

Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul were trading with gains in mid-session deals, while Tokyo was in the red.

Stock exchanges in the US ended with losses in the overnight session.

International oil benchmark Brent crude rose 1.07 per cent to USD 69.61 per barrel.

Meanwhile, India's merchandise exports rose 26.49 per cent year-on-year to USD 29.88 billion in November on better performance by key sectors, while the trade deficit hit a record high of USD 23.27 billion as imports of crude oil and gold spiked.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital market, as they sold shares worth Rs 2,765.84 crore on Wednesday, as per exchange data.

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