Key indexes rose for the third day in a row on Wednesday, with the Sensex soaring over 345 points in early trade on a surge in US markets and buying in index heavyweights Infosys and HDFC Bank.

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The 30-share BSE index was 344.71 points higher at 54,663.18. The NSE Nifty rose 101.15 points to 16,360.45.

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Axis Bank, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Finance, UltraTech Cement, Infosys, Wipro, and HDFC Bank were the top Sensex gainers in morning trades. Power Grid, NTPC, and Tata Steel, on the other hand, were laggards.

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Markets in Asia were divided, with Seoul and Tokyo trading higher and Shanghai and Hong Kong trading lower. On Tuesday, stock markets in the United States finished considerably higher.

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In the previous session, the BSE benchmark rose 1,344.63 points, or 2.54%, to 54,318.47. The NSE Nifty rose 417 points, or 2.63%, to 16,259.30 points.

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According to stock exchange statistics, foreign institutional investors continued to sell shares worth Rs 2,192.44 crore on Tuesday.

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Meanwhile, the international oil benchmark Brent crude rose 0.4% to $112.35 a barrel. The rupee fell 6 paise to 77.50 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, as a strengthening US currency in international markets and continued foreign money outflows impacted investor mood.