India, May 15 -- Stock markets rose for the second consecutive day on Thursday, with the benchmark Sensex jumping by nearly 790 points in a volatile session, driven by value buying in telecom, pharma and private banking shares.

The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 789.74 points, or 1.06 per cent, to close at 75,398.72. The index opened higher but slipped into negative territory in late morning deals. However, value buying in telecom and banking shares helped the barometer pare losses and later jump more than 1,000 points to a high of 75,681.88.

Extending gains to the second day, the 50-share NSE Nifty climbed 277 points, or 1.18 per cent, to finish at 23,689.60. Among Sensex firms, Bharti Airtel emerged as the biggest gainer, rallying over 5 ...