Nifty touches 2200 as markets seek new peaks

24 June 2005

Not many expected the markets to resume their rally today after yesterday's mild correction. US markets tumbled yesterday and most Asian markets had opened weak in the morning. Though the monsoon is showing signs of progress, it is late by over a week, and rainfall in June has been much lower than normal.

The opening went as per script, with both the Sensex and the Nifty declining close to half per cent each. The recovery came fast enough, surprising most by its refusal to give in, initiating an up trend.

The indices maintained a steady up trend till the closing minutes on a mix of fresh buying and short covering. The rally was supported by ONGC, TCS and HLL. Some recovery in Reliance Industries towards noon also helped the indices.

The last half hour saw a fair amount of volatility as the indices came down substantially from the highs of the day. However, the indices managed to recover and close with decent gains.

The Sensex closed at 7149, up 29 points, while the Nifty closed at 2194, up 10 points from yesterday's close. Nifty June futures discount to the spot widened marginally to 16 points from yesterday's 15 points.

Among Nifty stocks, Tata Tea, HLL and Hero Honda were the major percentage gainers while Gujarat Ambuja, Satyam Computers and SCI were the major losers.