Mumbai, Aug 16 (IANS): The benchmark indices ended higher for the third consecutive session with Sensex rising more than 300 points and Nifty rising over 100 points, as sentiments of investors boosted after easing inflation print.

At close, Sensex ended up 379.43 points or 0.64 per cent at 58,842.21, while Nifty closed up 127.10 points or 0.72 per cent at 17,825.25. About 1,995 shares advanced, 1,553 shares declined, while 157 shares remained unchanged on Tuesday.

Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki India, Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, Ultratech Cement and HDFC, among others, were the major gainers on the BSE.

"The easing of inflationary pressure has encouraged domestic investors to remain optimistic about the pace of economic recovery. Better-than-expected CPI numbers, aided by slower increase in food and fuel prices, may limit the pace of rate hikes by the RBI.

"In the Asian market, the Chinese central bank surprised the market by cutting its interest rates after a weak set of economic data. Following that, oil prices slumped on demand worries," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.

In July, CPI inflation had moderated to 6.71 per cent, as against 7.01 per cent in June due to moderation in food inflation.

The moderation in food prices was led by decline in prices of meat and fish, and oil and fats. Whereas, June IIP growth moderated to 12.3 per cent, while growing sequentially by 0.1 per cent. On a sectoral basis, electricity production grew by 16.4 per cent, manufacturing by 12.5 per cent, and mining by 7.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, July core inflation (CPI excluding food, fuel, pan and tobacco) remained broadly sticky at 6.25 per cent, with a sequential pickup of 0.7 per cent. This was led mainly by rising costs of education, and clothing and footwear.

Meanwhile, Asian stocks remained mixed. The Nikkei share average ended 0.01 per cent lower and Shanghai Composite Index closed flat at 0.05 per cent. European shares extended gains on Tuesday.

"Markets will continue mirroring global peers for cues. Meanwhile, we suggest investors to continue maintaining a stock specific approach. Also, investors should keep a close watch on fluctuating crude prices and currency movement," said Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking Ltd.