Mumbai:
Market benchmark BSE Sensex rallied over 300 points to reclaim the 40,000-mark on Thursday, supported by robust buying in IT stocks.
After soaring over 400 points during the day, the 30-share index ended 303.72 points, or 0.76 per cent, higher at 40,182.67. It hit an intra-day high of 40,468.88 and a low of 40,062.23.
The broader NSE Nifty rose 95.75 points, or 0.82 per cent, to finish at 11,834.60.
Top gainers in the Sensex pack included Ultratech Cement, TCS, HCL Tech, Infosys, HDFC Bank and Sun Pharma.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) jumped over 3 per cent after it announced a mega Rs 16,000 crore buyback plan at Rs 3,000 per equity share.
On the other hand, ONGC, ITC, PowerGrid, Reliance, Asian Paints and L&T ended in the red.
Elsewhere in Asia, bourses in Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo ended higher, while Hong Kong closed with losses.
Stock exchanges in Europe were trading higher in early deals.
International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 1.62 per cent higher at USD 42.67 per barrel.
In the forex market, the rupee strengthened by 9 paise to settle at 73.24 against the US dollar.
