Benchmarks post gains for fourth straight session

Nifty PSU bank index emerged as the top gainer with a 2.25% increase. The Nifty realty index followed closely with a 2.14% gain

- KISHOR KADAM

AFTER A VOLATILE intra-day trading, the benchmark indices managed to eke out gains on Wednesday, largely driven by a rally in public sector banks and realty shares.

The BSE Sensex rose 400 points in early trade, surpassing the 81,000-mark (intra-day high of 81,245.39) for the first time in 29 sessions. However, it gave up all gains, falling over 600 points from the day's high to a low of 80,630.53—down 215 points compared to the previous close—before settling at 80,956.33, up 110.58 points or 0.14%. The NSE Nifty 50 index ended the day at 24,467.45, up 10.3 points or 0.04%.

The benchmark equity indices closed in the positive territory for the fourth consecutive session on Wednesday. In the earlier three sessions, the Sensex and Nifty gained 2.25% each.