30-share BSE Sensex reversed its two session-sliding streak to rise 295.70 points or 0.49 per cent to close at 60,067.62 while the Nifty 50 index rose 87.60 points or 0.49 per cent to close at 17.916.80 on Muhurat day trade on Thursday.
Although markets are closed on account of Diwali, it opens for an hour between 6:15 PM to 7:15 PM every year as per a tradition to mark the beginning of the Hindu Samvat year. The tradition has been ongoing since 1957 at the Bombay Stock Exchange and since 1992 at National Stock Exchange.
It is believed that Muhurat trading brings prosperity and wealth throughout the year.
The BSE and NSE, however, would be closed on Friday on the occasion of 'Diwali Balipratipada'.
During trade on Thursday, Sensex rose as much as 436 points whereas Nifty 50 touched an intra-day high of 17,947 as investors made customary trades.
In the hour-long trading session, prominent gainers on the Sensex were Mahindra & Mahindra, ITC, Bajaj Auto, L&T, Kotak Bank, Sun Pharma and Nestle India, spurting as much as 2.87 per cent.
In contrast, ICICI Bank, UltraTech Cement, Asian Paints, and Dr Reddy's closed in the red, shedding up to 0.43 per cent.
Barring metal, all BSE sectoral indices finished in the green, led by auto, consumer discretionary goods, capital goods, industrials and FMCG.
Global equities hovered near record peaks even after the Federal Reserve announced that it would trim its asset purchases by USD 15 billion a month from November, with investors taking heart from the US central bank's assurance that it was in no rush to raise rates.
(With inputs from PTI)
