By IANS,
Mumbai : A key index of the Indian equities markets ended trade Friday 94 points higher than its previous close. Till about 30 minutes before shutting shop, it was ruling more than 200 points above Thursday’s closing figure.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 15,040.24 points, ended at 15,103.55 points – 94.87 points or 0.63 percent above its last close.
The S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) closed at 4,586.9 points, a marginal gain of 0.31 percent.
However, broader market indices came under pressure, with the BSE midcap index shedding 0.67 percent and the BSE smallcap index losing 1.02 percent.
The Sensex touched an intra-day high of 15,257.3 points and a low of 14,993.6.
Of the 13 sectoral indices on BSE, that for FMCG, realty and oil and gas stocks ended in the red as such stocks came under selling pressure, while capital goods, IT and auto stocks found favour among investors.
Among the gainers on the Sensex were Grasim, up 6.06 percent at Rs.2,510.70; Tata Motors, up 5.31 percent at Rs.389.05; BHEL, up 5.3 percent at Rs.2,287.40; and L&T, up 4.35 percent at Rs.1,519.30.
Losers included ITC, down 5.46 percent at Rs.191.40; Reliance Infra, down 3.66 percent at Rs.1,226.80; SBI, down 3.09 percent at Rs.1,817.90; and DLF, down 1.95 percent at Rs.408.05.
The overall market breadth was positive, with 1,519 scrips advancing, 1,318 declining and 54 remaining unchanged.
The NSE’s Volatility Index – a measure of the market’s expectation of volatility over the short term – stood at 41.31 points Thursday, higher than the 35-point mark that indicates risk.
In other Asian markets, a key index of Tokyo markets, the Nikkei, shut shop in the green gaining 99.05 points to end trade at 9,768.01 points.
The Hang Seng, the primary index of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, also rose 176.17 points to 18,679.53 points.
European markets were also ruling firm with the FTSE in Britain trading 62.6 points higher at 4,449.54 points, and its French peer CAC 40 ruling 25.23 points up at 3,337.26 points.