MUMBAI: Stock markets bounced back on Friday after two days of sharp decline, with the benchmark Sensex rallying 879 points and the Nifty ending above 22,500, led by a rally in TCS, other IT stocks and easing crude oil prices.

The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 879.09 points, or 1.23 per cent, to settle at 72,472.33. During the day, it surged 1,075.96 points, or 1.50 per cent, to 72,669.20.

The 50-share NSE Nifty rallied 288.65 points, or 1.30 per cent, to end at 22,520.45.

From the 30 Sensex firms, ITC climbed 4.78 per cent, followed by Tata Consultancy Services which jumped 4.23 per cent.

Tata Consultancy Services reported a 15 per cent jump in net profit for the July-September quarter to Rs 13,884 crore and pointed to continued growth momentum going forward.

Adani Ports, Infosys, HCL Tech, Larsen & Toubro and HDFC Bank were also among the major gainers.

Reliance Industries was the only laggard from the blue-chip pack.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 1.32 per cent to USD 102.9 per barrel.

"Domestic equities staged a relief rally, supported by value buying and short covering after the recent sharp correction. IT stocks outperformed on the back of a strong start to the Q2 earnings season and rising confidence in AI-driven revenue opportunities," Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Ltd, said.

Sentiment was aided by easing geopolitical concerns following indications that any potential US military action against Iran is unlikely before the mid-term elections, helping crude prices moderate, he added.

"Indian equities rebounded sharply on Friday, clawing back a substantial portion of the previous session’s losses as bargain buying and improving global cues lifted sentiment. IT stocks led the advance after Tata Consultancy Services reported better-than-expected September quarter results," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth tech firm, said.

A pullback in crude oil prices provided much-needed macroeconomic relief, easing some of the inflation concerns that had weighed on markets in the previous session, he said. "Reduced fears of an immediate escalation between the US and Iran, alongside some moderation in global bond yields, also helped restore risk appetite," Ponmudi added.

The BSE MidCap Select index jumped 1.59 per cent, SmallCap Select index climbed 0.56 per cent. All BSE sectoral indices ended higher. Focused IT surged 2.96 per cent, IT 2.91 per cent, Hospitals 2.46 per cent, FMCG 2.02 per cent, MidSmall Private Banks Quality Tilt 1.91 per cent, Services 1.71 per cent, MidSmall Private Banks 1.53 per cent, Insurance 1.45 per cent, PSU Bank 1.37 per cent and Private Banks index 1.25 per cent.

A total of 2,516 stocks advanced, while 1,867 declined and 227 remained unchanged on the BSE.

On the weekly front, the BSE benchmark index jumped 562.63 points, or 0.78 per cent, and the Nifty was up 98.5 points, or 0.43 per cent.

"Markets staged a strong recovery on Friday, taking a breather after the sharp sell-off in the previous session. On the sectoral front, IT led the recovery, supported by a positive reaction to TCS’ quarterly results, while banking, FMCG and auto also witnessed buying interest. Global cues offered some relief as Brent crude eased from its recent highs," Ajit Mishra, SVP – research, Religare Broking, said.

Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth, a Research Analyst firm, said, "Indian equities staged a sharp rebound as easing fears of an immediate US escalation against Iran pulled Brent crude back from levels above USD 104 a barrel, while bargain hunting followed Thursday’s steep sell-off. Stronger-than-expected support from TCS earnings and broad-based buying across IT, banking and financial stocks helped lift the Nifty 1.30 per cent to 22,520.45."

In Asian markets, Japan's Nikkei 225 index ended marginally lower, while Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hang Seng index ended higher. Equity markets were closed in South Korea.

Markets in Europe were trading higher.

US markets ended mostly lower on Thursday.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 12,943.58 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

On Thursday, the Sensex tumbled 1,045.46 points, or 1.44 per cent, to settle at 71,593.24. The Nifty dropped 371.25 points, or 1.64 per cent, to end at 22,231.80.