Sensex Rises Over 100 Points, Nifty Hits 11,900

Domestic stock markets started Tuesday's session with mild gains amid lackluster trade in Asian peers. The S&P BSE Sensex index rose as much as 107.65 points to touch 40,391.84 in the first few minutes of trade, and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark climbed above the 11,900 mark. Gains in auto and pharma shares outweighed losses in metal and financial stocks. 

At 9:21 am, the Sensex traded 92.37 points - or 0.23 per cent - higher at 40,376.56 while the Nifty was up 20.00 points (0.17 per cent) at 11,904.50.

Top percentage gainers on the 50-scrip index at the time were Bharti Infratel, Bharti Airtel, Grasim, Tech Mahindra and Cipla, trading between 1.28 per cent and 5.45 per cent higher.

Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank and Reliance Industries were the top drags on Sensex.

On the other hand, Zee Entertainment, UPL, Vedanta, GAIL and Hindalco - trading between 0.93 per cent and 2.28 per cent lower - were the top Nifty losers.

Market breadth was positive with 656  stocks trading higher and 381 moving lower on the BSE. On the NSE, 880 stocks advanced while 601 declined.

Telecom stocks were in focus after Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea - which reported record losses for the quarter ended September 30 - said they will increase tariffs from December 1.

Equities in other Asian markets started the session softer amid diminishing optimism about an end to the US-China trade war. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan fell 0.1 and Japan's Nikkei was last seen down 0.2 per cent. 

The Sensex had ended 72.50 points - or 0.18 per cent - lower at 40,284.19 after a volatile session on Monday, and the Nifty settled at 11,884.50, down 10.95 points (0.09 per cent) from the previous close.