Sensex closes above 14k; Hindalco Ind. soars

The benchmark index Sensex ended on a buoyant note on heavy buying interest seen in frontliners. Broader markets outperformed the benchmarks today. Realty gained the most followed by metal, PSU, power, capital goods and consumer durables stocks. It opened with a gain of 63.57 points, at 13,917.27 on Wednesday on positive global cues. It continued to trade strong in the after noon trades by breaching the psychological mark of 14,000 and gained further ground touching a high of 14,299.54 to finally close on a strong note.

Secondline stocks also traded higher. BSE Midcap and Smallcap index surged 4.15% and 4.56% respectively.

Among the sectoral indices, BSE Realty soared 7.98%, Metal advanced 5.67%, Power, PSU and Capital goods surged over 4% each, Auto and Oil & gas gained over 3% each, Consumer durables and Bankex rose over 2% each.

The Sensex ended the day with a gain of 399.54 points, or 2.88% at 14,253.24 after touching a high of 14,299.54 and a low of 13,891.04. The broad-based NSE Nifty gained 122.10 points, or 2.97% at 4,233.50 after hitting a high of 4,249.55 and a low of 4,118.75.

Major gainers in the 30-share index were Hindalco Industries (8.22%), Jaiprakash Associates (7.74%), DLF (7.18%), Hero Honda Motors (6.44%), Bharat Heavy Electricals (6.31%), and Tata Steel (6.14%).

Infosys Technologies, which dipped 0.85% were the major losers in the BSE Sensex.

Overall market breadth was extremely positive. Out of the total 2,684 stocks traded at BSE, 2,038 advanced, 557 declined while 89 remained unchanged.

European stocks climbed after Intel Corp. forecast sales that exceeded analysts` estimates. UK`s benchmark index FTSE 100 gained 69.25 points, or 1.63%, to trade at 4,306.61. French benchmark index CAC 40 rose 52.18 points, or 1.69%, to trade at 3,117.19 and Germany`s benchmark index DAX advanced 94.84points, or 2.01% to trade at 4,877.81. (4.30 p.m., IST)

Asian stocks gained after an Intel Corp sales forecast beat analyst estimates, Air China predicted higher profit and a brokerage upgraded China Cosco Holdings. Japanese benchmark index Nikkei rose 7.44 points, or 0.08%, to end at 9,269.25. Hong Kong`s Hang Seng index climbed 372.93 points, or 2.09%, to finish at 18,258.66 and China`s Shanghai Composite increased 43.39 points, or 1.38% to settle at 3,188.55.