The BSE Sensex soared 537 points and the NSE Nifty reclaimed the 11,400 level on Friday in a broad-based rally led by banking and auto stocks ahead of exit poll results, despite global headwinds.
The 30-share BSE benchmark closed 537.29 points, or 1.44%, higher at 37,930.77. It hit an intra-day high of 38,001.13 and a low of 37,415.36.
Similarly, the broader Nifty rose 150.05 points, or 1.33%, to settle at 11,407.15. During the day, it hit a high of 11,426.15 and a low of 11,259.85.
In the Sensex pack, Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Auto ended up to 6.09% higher after posting strong quarterly numbers.
Hero MotoCorp, Maruti, Kotak Bank, HDFC, HUL, M&M, HDFC Bank, ITC, ICICI Bank, Axis Bank, Coal India, SBI, IndusInd Bank and Asian Paints were also among the top gainers, rising up to 4.26%.
On the other hand, Yes Bank, Vedanta, Infosys, HCL Tech, Sun Pharma, TCS and NTPC ended up to 2.36% lower.
Investors lapped up banking and auto stocks, boosting key indices, ahead of the exit poll results scheduled for Sunday.
Broader indices followed the benchmarks, with the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices settling in the green.
While Japanese stocks ended higher, bourses in China and Korea ended in the red amid the US-China trade conflict. European equities too opened significantly lower.
The Indian rupee depreciated by 16 paise to 70.20 against the US dollar intra-day.
Global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.26 per cent higher at $72.81 per barrel.
