Markets rose in early trade

On Friday, the Sensex climbed 297.94 points or 0.48% to close at 61,729.68. , Photo Credit: Reuters

Equity benchmark indices climbed in early trade on May 22 amid buying in index heavyweights IT counters and Reliance Industries as well as rally in Asian markets.

In early trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex climbed 146.98 points to 61,876.66 points. The NSE Nifty rose 55.3 points to 18,258.70.

Among Sensex firms, NTPC, Power Grid, Wipro, Infosys, Sun Pharma, Larsen & Toubro, Tech Mahindra, Reliance Industries, Tata Consultancy Services, Titan, ITC and State Bank of India were major gainers.

IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, Nestle, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank were the laggards.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading in the positive zone.

On Friday, the US market closed with a slight decline.

Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude fell 0.87% to $74.92 per barrel.

On Friday, the Sensex climbed 297.94 points or 0.48% to close at 61,729.68. The Nifty closed at 18,203.40, up 73.45 points or 0.41%.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 113.46 crore on Friday after remaining buyers for several days, according to exchange data.