Mumbai: Equity frontline indices erased most of intra-day gains as traders booked profits on Tuesday but ended in the positive terrain after a volatile session.
At the closing bell, the BSE S&P Sensex was up by 152 points or 0.28 per cent at 54,555 while the Nifty 50 inched by 22 points or 0.13 per cent to 16,280.
While Nifty IT moved up by 0.8 per cent and financial service by 0.3 per cent, all other sectoral indices were in the red with Nifty PSU bank down by 2.6 per cent, metal by 2.7 per cent and realty by 2 per cent.
Among stocks, Bharti Airtel gained by 3.7 per cent to Rs 621.90 per share while Tech Mahindra moved up by 2.7 per cent to Rs 1,323.
Kotak Mahindra Bank advanced by 1.6 per cent, Axis Bank by 0.6 per cent, HDFC by 1.8 per cent and HDFC Life by 0.4 per cent.
However, Shree Cements fell by 4 per cent to wind up the day at Rs 27,129 per share.
Metal stocks too had a bad day with JSW Steel losing by 3.6 per cent, Tata Steel by 2.8 per cent and Hindalco by 2.2 per cent.
Meanwhile, Asian stocks were on a weak footing as persistent concerns over the spread of Delta variant of coronavirus dented sentiment and triggered falls in metals and oil prices.
South Korea’s Kospi index was down by 0.53 per cent on virus woes.
Japan’s Nikkei was up 0.24 per cent on corporate earnings while Hong Kong shares rose 1.23 per cent as tech shares rebounded.