Sensex opens in the green on firm global markets

Mumbai, June 11: After three consecutive bleeding sessions, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensitive Index (Sensex) today opened the week with gusto at 14,170.81 points and surged to 14,268.91 in early trade, registering a gain of an impressive 163.72 points.

There was cheer in the broader market too, as the National Stock Exchange (NSE) 50-stock Nifty Index also soared by 60.20 points to 4,205.20 points from its previous close of 4,145.00 after opening in the green at 4, 183.75.

Market analysts said the total turnover on the premier BSE amounted to Rs 399 crore and explained that the market breadth was strong, with close to 3 gainers for every loser: 1,242 shares advanced here as compared to 352 that declined. Among the 30-scrip Sensex pack, 27 advanced while the rest declined.

Experts predicted that the response to the initial public offering (IPO) of realty major DLF, which has opened for subscription today, may dictate the trend on the bourses today. DLF is mopping up between Rs 8,750 crore and Rs 9,625 crore at the proposed price band of Rs 500-Rs 550 per share. The subscription closes on Thursday.

Over the next few days, the progress of the July-September monsoon will hold the key to the trends in the market. The weather office had said in April that this year's monsoon was likely to be 95 per cent of the long-term average, with a 5 per cent margin of error. The annual monsoon is vital for India's economic health as it is the main source of water for agriculture, which generates more than a fifth of the gross domestic product, ecomomists explained.

Information technology (IT) stocks were in demand as the rupee has started weakening against the dollar in the past few days, traders disclosed.

The major gainers included Satyam Computers, Infosys, Wipro, TCS, HDFC Bank, HDFC, index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) and State Bank of India (SBI).

The only prominent laggard was Grasim.

A majority of Asian indices were trading with gains. Japan's Nikkei 225 Average rose as investors bought Toyota Motor, Matsushita Electric Industrial and other blue chips after data showed the economy grew at a faster pace in the first quarter than originally thought.

The Nikkei was up 0.26 per cent at 17,825.69, Hong Kong's Hang Seng gained 0.53 per cent, Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted was up by 0.43 per cent and Singapore's Straits Times rose by 1.43 per cent.

China's Shanghai Composite was also up 1.64 per cent to 3,977.15.

In the last trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average showed its biggest point gain in more than two months, and the Standard&Poor's 500 index crossed the 1,500 mark.

Dow surged 157.66 points, or 1.19 per cent, to 13,424.39. The S&P 500 advanced 16.95 points, or 1.14 per cent, to 1,507.67. It was just last month that the index crossed above the 1,500-mark for the first time in nearly seven years. The Nasdaq composite index gained 32.16 points, or 1.27 per cent, to 2,573.54.

UNI