Sensex and Nifty registered sharp gains led by broad-based buying across sectors on Thursday. At close, the Sensex was up 358.83 points or 0.69% at 52,300.47, and the Nifty was up 102.40 points or 0.65% at 15,737.80. About 2254 shares have advanced, 699 shares declined, and 116 shares are unchanged.

Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, SBI, Divis Labs, and IndusInd Bank were among the top gainers, while losers included ITC, Bajaj Auto, Adani Ports, UPL, and Eicher Motors.

Among sectors, metal, pharma, PSU Bank and realty indices are up 1-3 per cent. BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices rose 1 per cent each.

Neeraj Chadawar, Head – Quantitative Equity Research, Axis Securities, said: “Sentiments are back in the market after a sell-off seen in the last one hour of yesterday’s trading session. The broader market continued with its buying momentum, where once again small and mid-cap companies have outperformed the large caps. Today the market has welcomed the decision to increase the MSP of Kharif crops ahead of the monsoon season. The overall structure of the market is positive, where the risk appetite of the market has significantly improved in the last few weeks. Sector rotation and the stock-specific approach will be keys for out-performance, moving forward. Further in the near term, the market will closely monitor the outcome of the FOMC meeting which is scheduled early next week, which will further drive the direction of the market.”

Bitcoin price jumps 8%

Bitcoin surged around 8 percent to about $36,700 on June 10, according to the pricing on Coindesk at 2 pm IST. The world’s biggest and most popular cryptocurrency is up around 30.8 per cent from the year’s low of $27,734 on January 4.

Gold prices

Gold prices in India edged lower on Thursday tracking the international peers. At 10:55 am, gold futures for August delivery fell 0.28 percent to Rs 48,984 per 10 grams as against the previous close of Rs 49,124 and the opening price of Rs 49,018 on the MCX. Silver futures traded 0.53 percent lower at Rs 71,503 per kg. The prices opened at Rs 71,500 as compared to the previous close of Rs 71,884 per kg.

In the international market, gold prices dropped as investors had turned cautious ahead of the European Central Bank meeting. Spot gold was down 0.1% at $1,886.66 per ounce, as of 0305 GMT. US gold futures fell 0.4% to $1,888.50 per ounce, Reuters reported.

Global markets

Global shares hovered near a record high and the dollar also held steady on Thursday, eyeing US inflation data for any sign the Federal Reserve could start tapering its massive stimulus.

In early European trades, the pan-regional STOXX Europe 600 index rose 0.1 per cent following gains overnight in Asia, where MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.5 per cent. Tokyo’s Nikkei rose 0.3 per cent, and the Kospi in South Korea picked up 0.3 per cent as well. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng added 0.2 per cent.

US stock futures pointed to a flat open on Wall Street.

Elsewhere, oil prices fell as inventory data in the United States, the world’s top oil consumer, showed a surge in gasoline stocks that indicates weaker-than-expected fuel demand at the start of summer, the country’s peak season for motoring. Brent crude futures were last down 37 cents at $71.85 a barrel.