The benchmark Sensex of BSE erased early gains to close moderately higher by 21 points on Monday on alternate bouts of buying and selling days ahead of the Budget. The Bombay Stock Exchange barometer closed at 14,785.74 points,a gain of 21.10 points over the previous close. At its intra-day high,the 30-share index fell short of only 45 points to touch the 15,000 level. The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty edged up by 15.45 points to close at 4,390.95 points. It crossed 4,439 points level during the day. Marketmen said buying was largely confined to fundamentally strong stocks on expectations of a higher expenditure on infrastructure and some tax benefit in the upcoming Budget. They said every down-trend was checked as investors remained buyers in fundamentally strong shares available at existing lower levels. The buying activity was restricted as market participants adopted wait-and-watch policy,they added. The upsurge was led by metal producers after copper in Shanghai climbed for a fifth day. Sterlite Industries,one of the biggest copper producers,shot up by 5.66 per cent to Rs 646.70 after the metal gained on optimism that demand may be picking up as global stockpiles decline.
