Thursday, March 31, 2011

Sensex extend gains, surges 117 points in opening trade

MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex rallied by over 117 points in opening trade on Friday, extending its gains for the ninth session in a row on the back of steady capital inflows from foreign funds and easing inflation.

The 30-share index of the Bombay Stock Exchange rose by 117.33 points, or 0.60 per cent, to 19,562.55 points in opening trade. The Sensex has gained over 1,606 points in the previous eight sessions.

Stocks of realty, banking, oil and gas, metal, capital goods and auto companies led the rally.

Similarly, the broad-based National Stock Exchange Nifty index rose by 26.45 points, or 0.45 per cent, to 5,860.20.

Brokers said apart from continued buying by foreign funds, fresh buying by domestic players following the commencement of a new series in the derivatives segment, also buoyed the trading sentiments.

In addition, easing food inflation and hopes of strong fourth quarter earnings by corporates also had a positive impact, they said.

Meanwhile, Japan's Nikkei Index was up by 0.28 per cent and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose by 0.13 per cent in early trade on Friday. In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Index ended 0.25 per cent lower on Thursday.

toi

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