JOIN USBoth key indices of the Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange attained their highest in three weeks, while the market breadth was strong. FMCG stocks gained on hopes of timely arrival of monsoon rains which will help boost rural income, while metal stocks too edged higher. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) extended intraday gains.
The positive cues from the global markets front added to the buoyant sentiment. The BSE Sensex rose 271points or 1.49 per cent to 18,503 and S&P CNX Nifty was up 87 points or 1.59 per cent to close at 5,560.
The market breadth, indicating the health of the market, was strong with as many as 1835 shares on BSE advanced while 1007 shares declined and a total of 104 shares remained unchanged. BSE clocked turnover of Rs 3018 crore, higher than Rs 2467.57 crore on Monday.
Meanwhile during the day, European markets surged as sovereign debt worries soothed temporarily on signs that tougher austerity measures will be implemented by the Greek government. The key benchmark indices in UK, Germany and France were up.