BSE Sensex rises 153 pts to 1-mth high,HDFC Bank shares up,Wipro down

The Bombay Stock Exchange 30-share barometer resumed weak but later bounced back and remained in positive terrain most of the day before closing at 19,169.83,a rise of 153.37 points or 0.81 per cent. On the preceding trading day,Sensex had flared up by 285.30 points to close above the 19,000-mark.

The broader CNX Nifty of the NSE today spurted by 51.30 points or 0.89 per cent to end at 5,834.40. Brokers said the sentiment was bolstered as expectation that easing inflation and weak commodity prices might prompt the Reserve Bank of India to cut interest rate in an aggressive manner in its monetary policy meeting on May 3.

8220;Good liquidity coming in the market from FIIs along with falling gold prices and probable likelihood of rate cut in early next month,have boosted market sentiment,8221; said Rakesh Goyal,Senior Vice President,Bonanza Portfolio.

Market experts said a firming trend in Asian and Europea markets as the Group of 20 refrained from opposing the Bank of Japan8217;s stimulus policies,further supported the market.

Heavyweights like Lamp;T,HDFC,RIL,SBI and ITC supported the rise in shares while Infosys,TCS,Wipro,ONGC,Mamp;M and Bajaj Auto were major laggards in today8217;s trade. Traders said short-covering activity ahead of the expiry of futures and options contract on Thursday also helped domestic stocks remain firm. Leading private sector banks including HDFC Bank Tuesday and ICICI Bank Friday will report January-March quarter earnings this week.

Asian stocks ended higher for the second day in a row led by Japanese exporters as the yen slid to a four-year low against the US dollar after the Bank of Japan8217;s stimulus policies were reportedly unopposed at a Group of 20 meeting.

Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong,Japan,South Korea,Singapore,South Korea and Taiwan rose by 0.14 per cent to 1.89 per cent while China8217;s Shanghai Composite eased by 0.11 per cent.

European stocks market were trading higher in the early trade as key indices in France,Germany and UK moved up 0.46 per cent to 0.86 per cent. Back home,20 scrips out of the 30-share Sensex pack finished higher while 10 others ended lower.

Major gainers included Coal India 4.33 pc,Lamp;T 4.21 pc,HDFC Bank 3.85 pc,BHEL 3.04 pc,Tata Steel 2.27 pc,ICICI Bank 2.25 pc,HDFC 2.05 pc,NTPC 2.02 pc,Hindalco 1.98 pc,Hero Motocorp 1.70 pc,Jindal Steel m1.51 pc,SBI 1.31 pc,Sun Pharma 1.21 pc,Tata Motors 1.06 pc and RIL 1.02 pc.

However,Infosys dropped by 2.22 per cent,followed by ONGC 1.84 pc,TCS 1.75 pc,Bajaj Auto 1.67 pc,Mamp;M 1.20 mpc and Dr Reddy8217;s Lab 1.07 pc. Commenting on Nifty outlook,Nagji K Rita,Chairman amp; MD,Inventure Growth and Securities said: 8220;Nifty has had a sharp and smart rally from 5,500 to 5,840 levels. However,profit booking cant be ruled out. We advise that traders remain nimble footed and expect some profit booking in this week.8221;

Among the sectoral indices,the Samp;P BSE-CD rose by 4.26 per cent,followed by Samp;P BSE-Realty 3.41 pc,Samp;P BSE-CG3.33 pc,Samp;P BSE-Bankex 2.41 pc,Samp;P BSE-Metal 2.03 pc,Samp;P BSE-Power 2.01 pc and the Samp;P BSE-PSU 1.28 pc.

However,Samp;P BSE-IT dropped by 2.37 per cent and Samp;P BSE-Teck slumped by 1.26 per cent.

Total market breadth remained positive as 1,390 stocks ended higher while 1,004 stocks finished lower. Total turnover was relatively high at Rs 2,180.15 crore from Rs 2,143.94 crore last Friday.