Rally may continue

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 positive US and firm Asian indices may help the sentiment remain buoyant. On the technical front, the Nifty could test in the 4580-4620 range on the upside and has supports in the 4400-4620 range, while the Sensex has a likely support at 14700 and may face resistance at 15000.

US indices staged a late-session rally, managing an advance at the end of a choppy session after a positive housing report and a series of not-as-bad-as-expected auto sales reports gave investors some optimism. As a result, the Dow Jones flared up by 19 points at 8,741, while the Nasdaq added 8 points to close at 1,837.

All of the Indian ADRs traded mix on the US bourses. Satyam & Patni Computers led the pack with gains of 20.61% & 13.10% while Rediff, Infosys and Tata Motorsgained around 1-4% each. However, Wipro and VSNL ended with marginal gains. While Dr Reddy, VSNL, ICICI Bank & HDFC Bank closed in negative territory.

Crude oil prices in the US market surged, with the Nymex light crude oil for July delivery lost marginally with 3 cents. In the commodity segment, the Comex gold for August series gained $4.40 to settle at $984.40 a troy ounce.