Market may gain further

The benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty, are expected to commence on a firm note and witness significant rally during intra-day trades, as international markets backed by firm US and Asian indices may help the sentiment remain buoyant. Among the Asian majors, Kospi Index has surged 1.64% while Straits Times & Jakarta Composite Index has scaled up nearly 1-2% each. On the technical front, the Nifty could test in the 3520-3560 range on the upside and has supports in the 3450-3400 range, while the Sensex has a likely support at 11150 and may face resistance at 11450.

US indices posted significant gains on Wednesday, supporting the broader market, after a Federal Reserve report on the economy added to hopes that the pace of the slowdown is easing. As a result, the Dow Jones flared up by 109 points at 8,030, while the Nasdaq added a points to close at 1627.

Indian ADRs had a mixed outing on the US bourses. Infosys on weak quarterly numbers lost over 6.78% while Satyam, Wipro, Rediff and VSNL were up down 1-4% each. However, Tata Motors, ICICI Bank, Dr Reddy, MTNL, HDFC Bank and Patni Computers gained over 1-6%.

Crude oil prices in the US market declined, with the Nymex light crude oil for May delivery moved down by 16 cents to close at $49.25 per barrel . In the commodity segment, the Comex gold for June series gained $1.50 to settle at $893.50 a troy ounce.