Boosted by fag-end buying spurt,the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex today reclaimed the 20,000-mark with a 180-point boost on hopes of continued earnings momentum amid assurances by US Fed about maintaining its stimulus programme. *Stocks: Top Gainers/Top Losers ONGC,HDFC Bank,Infosys,L&T,Bharti Airtel,HDFC,ICICI Bank and SBI shares together added almost 150 points to the key index's gains. The 30-share Sensex resumed higher and stayed in positive terrain through the day,before settling at 20,128.41,a gain of 179.68 points,or 0.9 per cent. The index had closed at 20,215.40 on May 30. Yesterday,it gained 0.49 per cent. "The week has been intensely volatile on varied cues,both domestic and international," said Amar Ambani,head of research at India Infoline. "Dealers expect volatility to perk up on Friday,given the weekly close and results by index major Reliance Industries." The 50-stock CNX Nifty on the NSE climbed 64.75 points,or 1.08 per cent,to end at 6,038.05,a six-week high. The SX40 index on the MCX-SX gained 1.05 per cent. All 13 BSE sectoral indices closed with gains ranging from 0.24 per cent to 2.53 per cent,led by realty,banking,consumer durable,PSU,capital goods and refinery segments. Oil exploration giant ONGC was the top gainer on the Sensex,rising 4.42 per cent,after reports that a foreign brokerage upgraded the stock to 'buy' from 'outperform.' Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 26.09 crore,while domestic institutional investors were net sellers worth Rs 73.86 crore on Wednesday,according to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange. US Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke stated yesterday the bank had no plan to wind down its stimulus until the economy was back on track. Global financial services firm Macquarie today lowered India's growth forecast for this fiscal to 5.3 per cent from 6.2 per cent previously,citing significant capital outflows and rupee depreciation. Other key factors for the downgrade include political uncertainty and a continued slowdown in new project inflows delaying a capex cycle recovery,Macquarie said. Asian stocks closed mixed after US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday the Fed's asset purchases "are by no means on a preset course" and could even be expanded should economic conditions warrant. Key indices from Japan and Singapore gained,while in China,Hong Kong,South Korea and Taiwan,they declined. In Europe,the CAC rose 0.27 pc and the FTSE climbed 0.37 pc,while the DAX was down 0.09 pc. On the Sensex,the 23 shares that gained included HDFC Bank (3.22 pc),BHEL (3.14 pc),Hindalco Ind (2.35 pc),Hero MotoCorp (2.34 pc),Tata Power (2.25 pc) Bharti Airtel (2.12 pc),Infosys (1.79 pc),Larsen (1.79 pc),Maruti Suzuki 1.70 pc),Cipla (1.57 pc),Dr Reddy's Lab (1.19 pc),Jindal Steel (1.10 pc) and SBI (0.96 pc). *Search: India Inc A,B,C However,M&M dropped by 1.88 pc followed by Sterlite Ind 1.73 pc,NTPC 0.95 pc and TCS 0.82 pc. Axis Bank shares gained almost 4 per cent after the lender posted a 22 per cent growth in net profit to Rs 1,408.93 crore in the quarter ended June 30. Among the sectoral indices S&P BSE-Realty rose by 2.53 pc,followed by S&P BSE-Bankex 2.04 pc,S&P BSE-CD 1.72 pc,S&P BSE-PSU 1.50 pc,S&P BSE-CG 1.49 pc,S&P BSE-Oil&Gas 1.31 pc and S&P BSE-Power 0.86 pc. The total market breadth turned positive as 1,204 stocks gained,while 1,113 scrips declined and 169 scrips ruled steady. Total turnover dropped to Rs 1,905.35 crore from Rs 2,034.54 crore yesterday. Indian shares close at 1-1/2 month highs; earnings key (Reuters) Indian shares rose nearly 1 percent on Thursday to close at their highest in 1-1/2 months after Axis Bank surged on better-than-expected June-quarter results,sparking a rally in other banking stocks as well. Axis results,which follow those of Infosys Ltd earlier this month when it comforted investors by sticking to its dollar revenue guidance,have instilled some hope of improving corporate earnings. The gains have soothed some investor concerns sparked by the Reserve Bank of India's move on Monday to raise short-term interest rates to shore up the rupee,which sent bond yields surging and raised worries about the potential economic fallout. Meanwhile,the government announced lifting caps on foreign investment in some sectors,but the measures failed to improve sentiment given concerns about their implementation and expectations they would not immediately yield overseas flows. Investors now remain on watch for upcoming blue-chip earnings results and more potential measures from policy-makers to stem the slide in the rupee. "Earnings remain on radar alongside monsoon session to see if reforms announced so far can go through the parliament," said Deven Choksey,managing director at K R Choksey Securities. The benchmark BSE index rose 0.9 percent,or 179.68 points,to end at 20,128.41,marking its highest close since May 30. The broader NSE index rose 1.08 percent,or 64.75 points,to end at 6,038.05,clocking a second consecutive session of gains. Private-sector lender Axis Bank Ltd rose 3.7 percent after posting a higher-than-expected 22.5 percent increase in quarterly net profit,helped by higher interest income,and a marginal increase in bad loans. The results lifted shares of other banks,with HDFC Bank Ltd and Yes Bank Ltd rising 3.2 percent each. Oil and Natural Gas Corp Ltd gained 4.6 percent after CLSA upgraded the stock to "buy" from "outperform",citing prospect of a 20 percent upside to share prices. Consumer goods and pharmaceuticals shares extended gains to record highs,benefiting from their defensive nature in an uncertain market environment and from confidence about their growth prospects. Hindustan Unilever Ltd gained 0.4 percent,after earlier making an all-time high at 719.10 rupees,adding to its 9.9 percent rise on Wednesday. United Spirits Ltd rose 3.4 percent after hitting a record high of 2,810 rupees earlier. Among pharmaceutical stocks,Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd rose 0.5 percent,after making a record high of 1,132.50 rupees,while Dr. Reddy's Laboratories Ltd gained 1.2 percent. Lupin Ltd gained 1.8 percent after the company signed a pact with MSD to co-market a vaccine for the Indian market. Exide Industries Ltd rose 4.9 percent after Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse upgraded their ratings on the auto battery maker citing among other factors a recovery in replacement demand. However among stocks that fell,Tata Consultancy Services ,India's biggest software services provider,fell 1.1 percent ahead its June-quarter results later in the day.
