Sensex up 4.28

The Sensex ended last Friday at 16,849 points,up 4.28 per cent compared to its closing level at the end of the previous week.

The Sensex ended last Friday at 16,849 points,up 4.28 per cent compared to its closing level at the end of the previous week. It is currently trading at a 12-month trailing price to earnings PE ratio of 21.44. Foreign institutional investors FIIs invested Rs 2,897.90 crore in Indian equities last week.

According to Satkam Divya,managing director and chief executive officer,Rupeetalk.com,The week started with a massive rally of 349.43 points after G20 finance ministers and central bankers pledged to keep massive stimulus measures in place and the US dollar fell sharply against major currencies. The much-awaited Index of Industrial Production IIP clocked 9.12 per cent,much above analysts average estimate of 7-7.5 per cent. China also reported strong industrial production growth which led to a sharp rally in Asian indices,including India. Sectoral buying also helped the Sensex report positive growth.

On the sectoral front,the BSE Metal index gained the maximum 7.12 per cent. It was followed by the BSE IT index which rose 6.51 per cent. Says Divya: Metal stocks gained mainly due to strong domestic demand and a rally in metal futures on the London Metal Exchange. Moreover,steel sales reported in October 2009 were up 38 per cent over October 2008. Demand for steel remains strong from auto and infrastructure sectors. Demand for construction-grade steel has also improved. Chinas continued strength in industrial output and the domestic IIP number further boosted sentiments within this sector.

As for the IT sector,he says: Strong IT sector hiring and a statement from the Nasscom president that this sector would register double-digit growth from April 2010 brought about the rally. The news that Infosys aims to buy a BPO arm in Europe at a possible price of 50-100 million,and that TCS has gained a long-term contract from Cardiff City Council deal valued at 150 million pound propelled this sector upward.

The biggest laggards were BSE Realty,which fell - 2.30 per cent and BSE FMCG,which rose a mere 1.70 per cent. The Realty sector is still feeling the heat of increased provisioning requirement from 0.4 per cent to 1 per cent. FMCG stocks tanked mainly due to profit booking, says Divya. As for the next week,he says: The inflation data could be decisive.