Markets climb in early trade on buying in blue-chip bank stocks, lower oil prices

MUMBAI: Benchmark equity indices Sensex and Nifty rallied in early trade on Monday driven by buying in blue-chip bank stocks and lower crude oil prices.

Fresh foreign fund inflows also added to the optimistic trend in the domestic equity market.

The 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 281.40 points to 78,051.03 in early deals. The 50-share NSE Nifty rallied 74.60 points to 24,347.05.

From the Sensex pack, Bharat Electronics, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel and HCL Tech were among the major winners.

Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Power Grid and ITC were among the laggards.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, quoted 0.55 per cent lower at USD 71.72 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 1,355.33 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

"Revival of monsoon and FIIs turning buyers last Friday are positives for the market in the near-term. From this week onwards the market will start responding to the Q1 results which will begin on July 9th," VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

In Asian markets, Shanghai's SSE Composite index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng index were quoting higher, while South Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei 225 index traded lower.

US markets were closed on Friday due to the country's Independence Day celebrations.

"Geopolitical concerns have continued to recede as the US–Iran situation remains stable, with diplomatic engagement progressing and no major disruptions reported. The easing of tensions has reduced concerns over energy supply risks in the Middle East, underpinning investor confidence across global markets," Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, an online trading and wealth-tech firm, said.

On Friday, the Sensex climbed 261.79 points, or 0.34 per cent, to settle at 77,763.91. The Nifty went up 95.15 points, or 0.39 per cent, to end at 24,270.85.