Equity indices close in the green, energy stocks gain

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], Dec 14 : Equity benchmark indices traded with mild gains on Monday with energy stocks witnessing handsome profits.
The BSE S&P Sensex closed 154 points or 0.34 per cent higher at 46,253 while the Nifty 50 edged higher by 44 points or 0.33 per cent at 13,558.
Most sectoral indices at the National Stock Exchange were in the green with Nifty metal up by 1.38 per cent, PSU bank by 1.77 per cent and private bank by 0.47 per cent.
Among stocks, ONGC was the top gainer by moving up 5.9 per cent to Rs 102.55 per share. IndianOil Corporation was up by 2.6 per cent, Bharat Petroleum Corporation by 2 per cent, Coal India by 3.9 per cent and NTPC by 2.2 per cent.
The other prominent winners were L&T, Cipla, ICICI Bank, UPL and Sun Pharma. However, those which lost were Eicher Motors, Hero MotoCorp, Tech Mahindra, Wipro and HDFC Life.
Shares of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation (DHFL) were locked in a 5 per cent lower circuit after reports said fraudulent transactions to the tune of Rs 1,058 crore have been detected by transaction auditor Grant Thornton. The company is undergoing a resolution process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).
Meanwhile, Asian stocks started the week with mixed sentiments as investors gauged the chance of added US fiscal and monetary stimulus.
Japan's Nikkei added 0.3 per cent as a survey showed the mood among hard-hit Japanese businesses had improved in the December quarter.
But South Korea's Kospi lost by 0.28 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell by 0.44 per cent.