Sensex above 29,000 after 17 months, rises 119 pts

The benchmark BSE Sensex closed above 29,000-mark for the first in 17 months after rising 119 points today on buying in auto and realty sectors, while IT stocks took a heavy beating following TCS' outlook warning.
This triggered selling in IT counters with the country's largest software services firm TCS' falling by 5.14 per cent to Rs 2,321.15. Wipro plunged 1.77 per cent Rs 473.60 and Infosys tanked 1.62 per cent to Rs 1,037.90.
Among gainers, auto stocks were in limelight, after Siam raised growth guidance for the industry. Sector leader Maruti Suzuki hit an all-time high after rising 2.71 per cent to Rs 5,482.40. Bajaj Auto soared 3.55 per cent to Rs 3,091.95.

Tracking gains in bluechip stocks, investors were also seen building up position in broader markets, lifting the small-cap and mid-cap indices by 0.83 and 0.15 per cent.
"Market turned positive with continued liquidity while IT bellwethers were the laggards today due to reduction in revenue estimate, which capped the upside," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services.
With the US data continuing to diminish chances of a September rate hike by the Federal Reserve, domestic equities continued to attract interest.

The 30-share BSE barometer after a slightly better start, quickly slipped into the negative zone and touched a low of 28,854.56 on profit-booking in select scrips.

However, on emergence of buying it staged a strong comeback to hit a high of 29,077.28 before finally settling 118.92 points or 0.41 per cent higher at 29,045.28, its highest closing since April 13, last year.
The 50-share index ended up by 34.55 points to finish the day at 8,952.50 after shuttling between 8,896 and 8,960.35.
Sentiment also got a boost after domestic passenger vehicle sales grew for a 14th straight month in August with a 16.68 per cent increase, triggering buying activity in select auto sector stocks.
Globally, Asian markets mostly ended mixed with Hong Kong and Shanghai rising as investors cheered data showing Chinese imports rose in August for the first time in almost two years.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 0.75 per cent, while Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.13 per cent. However, Japan's Nikkei fell 0.32 per cent.
In the domestic market, 18 scrips out of 30 ended higher
while 12 closed lower.
Tata Motors emerged as the top gainer among Sensex constituents by rising 6.49 per cent to Rs 540.20 after reports that Credit Suisse has upgraded its shares to "outperform" from "neutral".
Shares of ICICI Bank rose nearly 2 per cent today after the company reported a net profit of Rs 3,102 crore for the quarter ended September as against Rs 3,030 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.

State-run power equipment maker BHEL's shares advanced by 2.87 per cent to Rs 143.15 after the company reported a net profit of Rs 109 crore in the second quarter.
Other big gainers that supported the key indices included GAIL, Asian Paint, Power Grid, Bajaj Auto, Axis Bank, ONGC, HDFC Ltd, M&M, Dr Reddy's, Wipro and Infosys, rising by up to 2.94 per cent.
However, Sun Pharma fell by 3.35 per cent, followed by Cipla 1.74 per cent, Maruti 1.03 per cent, Adani Ports 0.94 per cent, NTPC 0.71 per cent and Tata Steel 0.70 per cent.
The market breadth turned negative as 1,528 stocks ended lower, 1,354 finished in green while 128 ruled steady.

The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 3,142.77 crore, lower than turnover of Rs 3,203.53 crore registered during the previous trading session.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 311.18 crore yesterday, as per provisional data.