Markets on positive terrain, surges by 54.93 pts

Mumbai, July 24: For the fifth straight session, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex surged further ahead by 54.93 points to touch 15,787.13 till intra-day, after opening greener at 15,802.19 from it's previous close of 15,732.20, as buying momentum continued on positive cues from Asian and global markets.

''However, the market breadth which indicates the overall health of the market, was negative since 1,205 shares have declined as compared to 1,190 that have advanced,'' market analysts pointed out.

Similarly, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty Index also advanced by 7.20 points to touch 4,626.55 from it's previous close of 4,619.35, after opening firmer at 4,620.05.

'' The market is expected to stay choppy in the near term ahead of the expiry of this month's derivatives contracts on Thursday.

The total open interest in NSE's futures and option (F&O) segment increased to an all-time record of Rs 97,713.71 crore yesterday, from Rs 90,641.76 crore during the previous trading session,'' analysts cautioned.

BSE data showed that the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.32 per cent to 6,870.90, while the BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.13 per cent to 8,245.54. The BSE Capital Goods index hit surged by 2.52 per cent to 13,938.71. The total turnover here so far amounted to Rs 1,989 crore. Among the Sensex pack, 18 advanced while the rest declined.

The early gainers include Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL), Engineering&construction major L&T, NTPC, Reliance Industries (RIL), ONGC and Apollo Hospitals Enterprise.

Mahindra&Mahindra, TCS, Tata Motors, ACC and Patni Computer Systems were the prominent losers.

Asian indices gained today. Japan's Nikkei, Taiwan's Taiwan Weighted, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and Singapore's Straits Times are in the green.

US stocks also rebounded yesterday. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 92.34 points, or 0.67 per cent, to 13,943.42. The broader Standard&Poor's 500 index rose 7.46 points, or 0.49 per cent, to 1,541.56. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index showed more modest gains, rising 2.98 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 2,690.58.

Oil prices extended losses in Asia today, of nearly a dollar from the previous session, amid worries that crude prices have risen too high in recent weeks and on speculation that recent OPEC comments may signal a less bullish position on production and supplies.

Light, sweet crude for September delivery lost 13 cents to USD 74.76 a barrel in Asian electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 90 cents yesterday to USD 74.89 a barrel, dealers said.

UNI