Sensex, Nifty end higher; banking stocks surge

Benchmark indices ended the day higher led by a surge in select PSU banking and pharma stocks. The Sensex ended the day higher by 313 points, while the Nifty ended the day higher by 102 points.

Leading the set of gainers were select banking stocks like Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of India, State Bank of India and Yes Bank. Shares in South Indian Bank hit a 52-week high with the stock gaining as much as 30 per cent this year.

Other Nifty stocks that gained in trade were Sun Pharma, BPCL, IDFC, Larsen and Tata Power. Shares in Thomas Cook rose after the company said that its arm IKYA Human Capital Solutions signed an agreement to acquire Hofincons Infotech & Industrial Services.

Shares in Union Bank gained after shareholders approved raising funds up to Rs 1,386 crore via QIP. Reliance Industries and Mahindra and Mahindra were among the few stocks that lost ground in trade.

Falling crude prices saw a sharp surge in the stocks of BPCL, HPCL and Oil India. Pharma major Cipla rallied following reports of a tie-up with a Yemen based firm.

Mid cap stocks that gained ground in trade were Adani Enterprises, CESC, IFCI and UPL. The real action was in the PSU banking space with Allahabad Bank, Syndicate Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Union Bank gaining anywhere between 6-10 per cent.

Meanwhile, markets across Asia ended the day with gains, while most of Europe was trading higher.

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