The Sensex ended the day higher by 14 points (provisional), while the Nifty closed higher by 7 points. Among the top gainers in trade were the metal stocks which rallied following value buying and short covering. Jindal Steel gained 8%, while Sesa Goa jumped 5% and Tata Steel gained 2%.

Other Nifty stocks that gained in trade were Ambuja Cements, NTPC, Jaiprakash Associates, Coal India and Punjab National Bank. Heavyweights, ITC and Reliance also lent support to the markets.

PSU banking stocks which were hammered in the last few trading sessions, saw some recovery in their prices. Notable gainers from the space were Punjab National Bank, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, Canara Bank and Syndicate Bank.

The worst performer from the Nifty stocks today was BHEL, which fell almost 20% after the company reported poor set of numbers. Other stocks that lost ground were HDFC, Larsen and Toubro, Tata Power, Tata Motors and HDFC Bank.

Mid cap stocks also had a quiet day of trade. Notable gain gainers from the mid cap stocks were Syndicate Bank, Unitech and Punj Lloyd.

Shares in Siemens fell after BofAML put an underperform rating on the stock, while Grasim fell after its results lagged estimates.

Meanwhile, markets in Asia ended the day higher led by gains in the Chinese Shanghai Composite, Taiwan Weighted and the Hong Kong's Hang Sang.

GoodReturns.in