Mumbai, February 24
Benchmark indices started on a positive note on Friday in line with optimism in the US market and buying in Reliance Industries.
The BSE Sensex climbed 297.25 points to 59,903.05 points after a positive start. The NSE Nifty advanced 88.5 points to 17,599.75 points.
In the Sensex pack, Bajaj Finserv, Kotak Mahindra Bank, State Bank of India, Infosys, IndusInd Bank, Asian Paints, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Industries and UltraTech Cement were among the gainers.
Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Maruti and ITC were the laggards.
In Asian markets, South Korea, China and Hong Kong quoted lower, while Japan traded in the green.
The US markets ended higher on Thursday.
On Thursday, the Sensex declined 139.18 points or 0.23 per cent to settle at 59,605.80 points. The Nifty slipped 43.05 points or 0.25 per cent to end at 17,511.25 points.
International oil benchmark Brent crude climbed 0.77 per cent to USD 82.84 per barrel.
Foreign Portfolio Investors offloaded shares worth Rs 1,417.24 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
