Sensex, Nifty Snap Four-day Losing Streak On Late-day Buying Spree

Indian shares rose sharply on Friday to snap a four-day losing streak on late-day buying spree.

Markets opened deep in the red as U.S. rate worries and signs of escalating tensions in the Middle East, following Israel's retaliatory strikes against Iran, drove investors towards safe-haven assets.

Stocks made a dramatic turnaround in the last couple of hours after Iran's state-run media downplayed the attacks, saying the explosions heard in Isfahan were the result of the activation of Iran's air defense systems.

Also, the nuclear facilities in Iran's central Isfahan province are completely safe, the semi-official news agency Tasnim reported.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) also confirmed that there has been no damage to Iranian nuclear sites as a result of the Israeli strike confirmed by U.S. officials.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex ended the session up 599.34 points, or 0.83 percent, at 73,088.33 after having hit a low of 71,816.46 earlier.

The broader NSE Nifty index hit an intraday low of 21,777.65 before reversing course to end up 151.15 points, or 0.69 percent, at 22,147.

Auto, financials and metal stocks paced the gainers, with JSW Steel, Maruti Suzuki India, HDFC Bank, Mahindra & Mahindra and Bajaj Finance climbing 2-3 percent.

Cues from Asia and Europe were negative, while the dollar, oil and gold all gave up initial gains after reports that Israel's retaliatory strike on Iran had been calibrated to avoid a spiralling conflict.

Market Analysis