Sensex gains 73.85 points, closes at 14,993

Mumbai, Aug 29: After breaching the psychological barrier of 15,000, the Sensex today notched up 73.85 points on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to settle higher at 14,993.04, on value buying coupled with short covering in the derivatives market.

''The barometer index had actually opened lower by around 268 points at 14,651.49 from its previous close of 14,919.19. Then in a trend reversal, the market staged a solid rebound on value buying coupled with short covering in the derivatives market.

The Sensitive Index had even crossed the 15,000 level to touch an intra-day high of 15, 029.53. The market had tumbled in early trade following drop in US stocks overnight driven by credit concerns, US housing data and doubts about the sustainability of global economic growth. A recovery in European markets from an early slide, aided rebound on the domestic bourses,'' market analysts surmised.

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) S&P CNX Nifty also advanced by around 39 points to settle in the green at 4,359.30 from previous close of 4,320.70 after moving between 4,368.60 and 4,226.35 during the day's session.

''The market breadth on BSE was strong today as buying has resumed for small-cap and mid-cap stocks. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have been on a buying spree lately. Today, the turnover surged in the last one hour of trade. However, volatility is expected to remain high in the next two days ahead of this month's expiry of derivatives contracts tomorrow,'' market pundits noted.

BSE data shows that 1,568 shares advanced as compared to 1102 that declined, while 66 remained unchanged. The total turnover amounted to Rs 4,797 crore. Among the 30-scrip Sensex pack, 19 advanced while the rest slipped.

Tata Steel, ONGC, SBI, BHEL, Hindalco Industries, Reliance Energy, Reliance Industries (RIL), ACC and Tata Motors were the day's leaders, while Infosys Technologies, NTPC, and HDFC were the prominent laggards.

US shares slumped during the last trading session as investors grew more uneasy about the economy and whether the Federal Reserve will take the steps needed to prevent credit market problems from spreading further. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 280.28 points, or 2.10 per cent, to 13,041.85. The Standard&Poor's 500 index was down 34.43 points, or 2.35 per cent, at 1,432.36 and the Nasdaq Composite index shed 60.61 points, or 2.37 per cent, to 2,500.64.

European markets recovered after opening lower today. UK's FTSE 100 rose 0.14 per cent to 6,110.58, France's CAC 40 rose 0.19 per cent to 5,484.73 and Germany's DAX was down 0.18 per cent to 7,416.91.

In Asia, Hang Seng sank 1.47 per cent at 23,020.60, Japan's Nikkei tanked 1.69 per cent at 16,012.83, Taiwan Weighted was down 0.97 per cent at 8,643.22, Singapore's Straits Times slipped 0.25 per cent at 3, 334.36, Shanghai Composite tanked 1.64 per cent to 5,109.27 and South Korea's Seoul Composite fell 0.17 per cent at 1,826.19.

UNI