NEW DELHI, 18 October (H.S.):The Indian benchmark indices broke 3-day losing streak and ended higher with Nifty above 24,850. The Sensex added 218 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 81,224 and the Nifty ended with rise of 104 points or 0.4 percent to settle at 24,854.

In the broader market at Bombay Stock Exchange, smallcap indices ended in the red, while Midcap index ended marginally higher.

In the Sensex index, 19 out of 30 companies ended in Positive territory. In the top gainers, Axix Bank increased 5.5 percent, ICICI Bank gained 2.4 percent and TATA Motors added two percent; whereas in the laggards, Infosys lost 4.6 percent, Asian Paints shed 2.2 percent and Nestle India fell 1.2 percent.

In Sectoral Indices at the BSE, only Seven out of 20 sectors logged losses. In the top gainers, Bankex rose 1.8 percent, Metal gained 1.6 percent and Financial Services added 1.1 percent; whereas

in the top laggards, Information Technology slipped 1.7 percent, Teck declined 1.3 percent, and FMCG was down by 0.4 percent.

The overall market breadth at the BSE was negative as shares of 1833 shares advanced, 1928 shares declined, and 106 shares unchanged.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Nimish kumar