JOIN USThe market kept its momentum going for the second day with a solid run on D-Street; and, some help from Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram whose assertion that he intends to unveil a path of fiscal consolidation saw the Sensex jumping 188.82 points or 1.08 per cent to settle at 17,601.78, its highest closing since July 10 this year.
Market breadth was positive, while data on Tuesday revealed a continuation of Indian stocks being purchased by foreign funds, underpinning the stronger investor sentiment in the markets.
Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) edged lower in volatile trade after Oil Minister Jaipal Reddy said the government may approve RIL's new investment plan for the D6 block in the eastern offshore Krishna-Godavari basin as the country continues to face an acute shortage of natural gas.
Telecom stocks showed mixed fortunes. Cigarette maker ITC edged higher, while in the aviation sector SpiceJet hit a 52-week high.
The Kingfisher Airlines stock hit a lifetime low of Rs 8.71 a share on Tuesday. DLF jumped after strong sequential growth in bottomline in the first quarter ending June 30, 2012. The index jumped 228.59 points at the day's high in late trade and rose 4.96 points at the day’s low in early trade.
The S&P CNX Nifty jumped 54.15 points or 1.03 per cent to settle above the psychological level of 5,336.70, its highest closing level since 10 July 2012.
From broader markets, the BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.35 per cent and the BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.36 per cent.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive with as many 1,522 shares on BSE rising and 1,285 shares falling, while a total of 133 shares were static. BSE clocked a turnover of Rs 2,171 crore, higher than Rs 1,675 crore logged on Monday. From a recent low of 17,197.93 on August 3, 2012, the Sensex has gained 403.85 points or 2.34 per cent in two trading sessions. The Sensex has gained 365.60 points or 2.12 per cent in this month so far (till 7 August 2012).
With this, the Sensex has jumped 2,146.86 points or 13.89 per cent in calendar 2012 so far (till 7 August 2012).
From a 52-week low of 15,135.86 on December 20, 2011, the Sensex has risen 2,465.92 points or 16.29 per cent and from a 52-week high of 18,523.78 on 22 February 2012, the Sensex has lost 922 points or 4.97 per cent.