Mumbai, Nov 23 (IANS) Buoyed by gains in the scrip of one of the largest companies in the country — Reliance Industries (RIL), a benchmark index of the Indian equities markets shut shop Monday 0.93 percent higher than its previous close.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) — which opened at 17,067.14 points against Friday’s close at 17,021.85 points — ended the day at 17,180.18 points, 158.33 points or 0.93 percent higher.

The RIL stock — which has the highest weightage on the sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) — closed 3.31 percent up at Rs.2,195.50 against Friday’s close at 2,125.15.

The scrip found favour among buyers after the company announced it had bid for a controlling stake in bankrupt Dutch petrochemicals firm LyondellBasell Industries.

At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty closed at 5,103.55 points, against the previous close at 5,052.45 points, a gain of 1.01 percent.

Broader market indices also ended in the green with the BSE midcap index up 0.31 percent and the BSE smallcap index closing 0.84 percent higher.

The market breadth was positive, with 1,560 stocks advancing, 1,178 declining and 88 remaining unchanged.

Gains were seen in broader markets as well with buying activity seen in FMCG and metal companies as well.

Among the prominent gainers on the Sensex were Tata Steel, up 3.92 percent at Rs.573.25; ITC, up 3.54 percent at Rs.269.15; ACC, up 2.97 percent at Rs.789.25; and ICICI Bank, up 2.18 percent at Rs.916.85.

Some of the losers were Bharti Airtel, down 4.48 percent at Rs.275.80; Jaiprakash Associates, down 1.4 percent at Rs.229.65; Reliance Communications, down 1.04 percent at Rs.172.05; and Infosys, down 0.82 percent at Rs.2,407.55.

Other major Asian markets ended a mixed bag.

The Hang Seng, a benchmark index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange closed at 22,771.39 points, 0.54 percent or 51.79 points lower.

The Kospi, benchmark index of the Korean Stock Exchange, shut at 1,619.05 points, down 0.1 percent.

In China, the Shanghai composite index was ended in the green at 3,338.66 points, up 0.92 percent.

Major European markets were trading positive.

Britain’s FTSE 100 index was ruling at 5,340.29 points, up 1.69 percent, while its French peer, CAC 40, was trading a similar 1.69 percent higher at 3,792.45 points.

The German index, DAX, was trading at 5,750.88 points, 1.55 percent above its last closing figure.