Stock markets climb in early trade on firm global trends

Mumbai: Market benchmarks climbed in early trade on Friday, bouncing back from the previous day's fall, following a positive trend in global equities and fresh foreign fund inflows.

The BSE Sensex climbed 503.56 points to 59,412.91 after starting the trade on a positive note. The NSE Nifty advanced 157.15 points to 17,479.05.

From the Sensex pack, State Bank of India, Power Grid, IndusInd Bank, NTPC, HCL Technologies, Bharti Airtel, ITC, Mahindra & Mahindra, Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank were the major gainers.

Asian Paints was the only laggard.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Japan, China and Hong Kong were trading in the green.

The US markets had ended higher on Thursday.

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 12,770.81 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

The BSE benchmark had tumbled 501.73 points or 0.84 per cent to settle at 58,909.35 on Thursday. The Nifty declined 129 points or 0.74 per cent to end at 17,321.90.

International oil benchmark Brent crude dipped 0.40 per cent to USD 84.43 per barrel.