Sensex ends with 200 pts gain; IT, banks shine
16 Dec 2010
The Sensex ended trade on a strong note ahead of a long weekend. After a disastrous fall last week, the Nifty recovered nearly 200 points to end near 5950 level this week. The rally was fueled by RBI's monetary policy, which come out today. The Central Bank kept key policy rates unchanged, which helped boost sentiment of traders and investors in the markets.
The Sensex was up 217.08 points or 1.10% at 19864.85, and the Nifty was up 56.45 points or 0.96% at 5948.75.
About 1579 shares have advanced, 1366 shares declined, and 517 shares are unchanged.
However, it may not be a so smooth ride going forward according to Anand Tandon, CEO of JRG Securities who feels the US markets are looking a little more attractive right now because many of the companies are showing some kind of growth there and the valuations are far lower.
''Whereas in most emerging markets including in India, he says, the valuations are way out whack,'' he says adding, ''So, on a relative basis, I think funds will flow back into the US market. Therefore, you can't be relying on the international fund flows for the equity market to move up from here,'' he adds. According to him, the markets may not see any sizable gains in early 2011.
Another cautionary view came in from UR Bhatt, managing director of Dalton Capital who believes that the Nifty may not be able to cross 6,000 at least in the short-term. Having a pessimistic outlook for the banking space, he says this is not a time to take a bold call on these stocks. ''Pension and gratuity liability are concerns for banks,'' he reasons.
Top gainers on the Sensex were Hero Honda at Rs 1,679.10 up 3.57%, TCS at Rs 1,140.40 up 3.56%, Infosys at Rs 3,292.30 up 2.77%, Wipro at Rs 469.80 up 2.71% and Tata Steel at Rs 658.85 up 2.54%.
