Sensex rises 114 points, Nifty regains 9,100 mark

Equity benchmark Sensex rose 114 points on Thursday as the gradual reopening of the economy rallied FMCG, auto and IT stocks. 

After opening on high of 30,904.29 and rising to an intra-day high of 31,188.79, the 30-share index settled 114.29 points or 0.37% up at 30,932.90. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 39.70 points, or 0.44%, to 9,106.25.

In the Sensex pack, ITC was the top gainer, rallying over 7%, followed by Asian Paints, Hero MotoCorp, Maruti, Bajaj Auto, Sun Pharma, TCS and HCL Tech. IndusInd Bank, NTPC, Bajaj Finance, HDFC, L&T and Axi Bank were top losers. 

Similarly, on Nifty, ITC gained over 7%, followed by Hindalco, Asian Paints, Hero MotoCorp, Maruti, UPL and Bajaj Auto. Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, NTPC, IndusInd Bank and Adani Ports were the top laggards. 

Experts said buying was seen in frontline stocks of sectors like auto, IT, metals and FMCG as investors took note of gradual opening of the economy. 

However, some selling was witnessed as negative global just before the day's closing as traders booked profits. 

The number of cases in India has spiked to over 1.12 lakh, while the death toll rose to 3,435, according to the Union Health Ministry. Even as the lockdown has been extended till May 31, the guidelines have been relaxed, allowing the opening of the business and partial lifting of travel restrictions. 

The government plans to resume domestic flight operations from Monday with social distancing restrictions. 

Globally, the number of COVID-19 cases have crossed 50 lakh-mark while the death toll is over 3.28 lakh.