Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], November 2 (ANI): Indian equity markets ended sharply higher on Monday, with the Sensex and Nifty gaining over 1.6 per cent, supported by better-than-expected second-quarter earnings, improving domestic economic indicators and foreign investors turning buyers amid a global rotation in artificial intelligence-related stocks.

The Nifty 50 index closed at 23,440.80, gaining 387.70 points or 1.68 per cent, while the BSE Sensex settled at 75,692.78, rising 1,233.25 points or 1.66 per cent.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Investments, said Indian equities started the week on a strong note, supported by better-than-estimated Q2 earnings and improving domestic economic conditions.

'Domestic macro indicators provided an additional boost to sentiment, with October passenger-vehicle sales growth reflecting healthy festive demand, while gross GST collections increased, reinforcing the resilience of domestic consumption and economic activity,' Nair said.

He added that global cues also supported the market, with softer crude oil prices and renewed US-Iran diplomatic efforts easing concerns over energy costs and geopolitical risks.

'Foreign investors turning buyers as a global AI rotation also provided support to domestic equities,' he said, adding that the rally extended to mid- and small-cap stocks, indicating improved market participation.

Among sectoral indices on the NSE, Nifty Metal led the gains, rising 2.8 per cent, followed by Nifty PSU Bank, which advanced 1.19 per cent, and Nifty Auto, which gained 1.05 per cent. Nifty Realty rose 0.80 per cent, while Nifty FMCG gained 0.4 per cent.

However, some sectors ended in the red. Nifty IT declined 0.8 per cent, Nifty Media fell 0.7 per cent, Nifty Private Bank lost 0.40 per cent and Nifty Pharma slipped 0.32 per cent.

Among Nifty 50 stocks, Reliance Industries, Tata Steel, JSW Steel and Shriram Finance were among the top gainers. Infosys, ICICI Bank, HDFC Life, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank were among the major laggards.

In the commodities market, Brent crude oil prices declined more than 4 per cent to USD 108.54 per barrel on Monday. While prices have eased compared with last week, they remain above their long-term average.

Gold prices continued to remain weak, trading at Rs 1,38,420 per 10 grams for 24-karat gold. Silver prices, however, gained 1.65 per cent to Rs 1,82,094 per kg at the time of reporting.

On the currency front, the rupee weakened 21 paise to 94.97 against the US dollar on Monday, compared with Friday's close of 94.76. It opened at 94.90.

Rajeev Sharan, Head of Research at Brickwork Ratings, said the rupee came under pressure from a firm dollar index near 101.88 and an AI-led selloff in US technology stocks that affected Asian currencies.

'The more telling point sits inside the RBI's reserve data. Headline reserves fell for a seventh straight week, by USD 1.27 billion to USD 719.75 billion, but that drop was purely a USD 2.65 billion gold-valuation loss; foreign currency assets, which move on actual dollar sales, actually rose USD 1.36 billion,' he said.

He added that easing crude oil prices and foreign investor buying in Indian equities were providing support to the rupee, although global dollar strength could continue to test the currency.

In other Asian markets, trading remained mixed. Japan's Nikkei 225 declined 0.12 per cent to close at 63,215, while Singapore's Straits Times fell 1.37 per cent to 5,304. Taiwan's weighted index lost 0.65 per cent to 44,920. Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.26 per cent to close at 23,356, while South Korea's KOSPI advanced more than 2 per cent to 5,859. (ANI)