Nifty ends above 5400...Sensex spurts

It was another splendid late comeback by the Indian market with the NSE Nifty surging past 5400 and the BSE Sensex scoring a century. Both the key indices finished near the day's high, thanks to the spurt witnessed in the last half an hour. The Nifty has crossed 5400 for the first time since early August. The late recovery was led by Metals, Realty, Banking and Auto stocks. Despite the late upsurge the Large-Cap indices under-performed their broader peers. There was no real catalyst for today's advance as results continued to be mixed. So, it appears to be the continuation of the liquidity-driven 'risk on' rally.

Traders overlooked the ongoing concerns about Greece's ability to avert the eurozone's maiden debt default. In Asia, the sentiment was affected by China's higher-than-expected inflation in January, though seasonal factor played a role in it. The Nikkei index in Japan and the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong were marginally down. European markets were trading with modest gains before the policy announcements from the Bank of England and the ECB. Market players will also focus on the euro area finance chiefs' meet where Greece issue will be on top of the agenda.



After opening near 5350, the Nifty stayed in a narrow range throughout the day and struggled to find specific direction. But, the main indices suddenly sprung back to life in late afternoon trade, lifting the Nifty above 5400 and the Sensex above 17800.

The Sensex recovered over 250 points and the Nifty over ~70 points from their respective lows.

Finally, the Sensex ended at 17,830, up 123 points from the last close. It earlier touched a day's high of 17,879 and day's low of 17,609.

The Nifty settled at 5,412, up 44 points. It hit a day’s high of 5,423 and day’s low of 5,339.

The market breadth remained in favor of the bulls. On the BSE, 1828 stocks advanced as against only 1057 declining stocks. While 125 stocks remained unchanged.

The INDIA VIX on the NSE was down ~4% to close at 23.30. The index hit day's high of 24.61 and hit day’s low of 23.25.

Among the 30 constituents of the Sensex, Sterlite, Jindal Steel, Tata Power, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Bank and Tata Motors were among the major leaders. On the other hand, Sun Pharma, DLF, Hindalco, Bharti Airtel and L&T ended in the negative terrain.

Among the BSE sectoral indices, the BSE Metals index was the top gainer, up 2%. The BSE Realty index gained 2%, while the BSE Banking index was up 1.9%. Auto and Consumer Durables indexes rose 1.7% or more.

The BSE Mid-Cap index rose ~1.2% while the BSE Small-Cap index gained 1.1%.

Although FII inflows have tapered off slightly of late they continue to be positive. Data on direct tax collection and bank credit is not encouraging, reflecting the tough macro-economic conditions in the domestic economy. At the same time, it raises expectations of further policy easing by the RBI either in March or in April.

On Friday, the market will react to the latest IIP data while WPI inflation for January will be announced next week. The second phase of UP election is being held on Saturday. An improved showing by Congress in the state polls could strengthen its hands at the Centre. A few encouraging developments on the policy front will go a long way in boosting the confidence in India.

Meanwhile, details over adjustment to pensions remain the sole sticking point in talks among Greek leaders even as most of the conditions set by international lenders for more aid were agreed upon.

Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos' office released a statement on Thursday saying that the parties have reached an agreement "in principle." Representatives of the so-called troika reportedly met Papademos immediately after talks with the political leaders were adjourned.

A deal on fresh austerity measures is crucial for Greece to secure the second round of bailout funds from the so-called troika of EU, IMF and ECB.

Concerns that Greece may be staring at a disorderly default has dampened investor confidence despite a strong rebound in equities this year.

The eurozone financial system is not yet seen to be in a position to deal with a disruptive Greek default and a possible European Monetary Union or European Union exit.

Greece is set to pay a €14.5bn ($19bn) bond due on March 20.