Sensex logs best gain in over 4 yrs, up 727 pts to nearly 20K

The Sensex today zoomed by 727 points, biggest single-day gain in over 4 years, to end just a shade below 20,000-mark on heavy FII buying in bluechips on the back of positive factors like strong rupee, solid trade data and receding concerns about US military attack on Syria.
Upbeat Chinese economic data and lower oil prices also boosted global markets, helping Indian stocks extend gains.
The Sensex, which had gained 1,030 points in past three sessions, zoomed by 727.04 points, or 3.77 per cent to 19,997.10, after touching 20,000 level. The 30-share index recorded its biggest single-day gain since May 2009 led by auto, capital goods and telecom sector shares.

The NSE index Nifty jumped up 216.35 points, or 3.81 per cent to 5,896.75, after touching 5,904.85. Also, MCX-SX's SX40 index ended at 11,849.66, up 458.1 points or 4.02 per cent.
The rupee today touched over two-week high level of 64.09 and was last trading at 64.29 versus dollar.
Brokers said markets were buoyant after data showed India's exports rose by 12.97 per cent to USD 26.14 billion in August and trade deficit declined to USD 10.91 billion.

"Heavy dose of short-covering on back of receding risk of military intervention in Syria at the same time, positive vibes created by new RBI Governor drove stocks upward," said Anindya Banerjee, currency analyst, Kotak Securities.

In Sensex, Reliance Industries rose by 2.43 per cent to Rs 888.65, ITC by 6.07 per cent to Rs 335.40 and Infosys by 4.76 per cent to Rs 3,164.50. The three are the most influential and hold 30 per cent weight in the bluechip index.
Foreign investors pumped in fresh funds in Indian stocks and bonds worth Rs 20 billion in previous 3 days on buying in fundamentally strong stocks, brokers said.
In telecom space, Bharti Airtel shot up 8.15 per cent after telecom regulator TRAI recommended a sharp 60 per cent cut in the floor price of spectrum. Tata Motors jumped by 9.88 per cent after industry data showed domestic passenger car sales grew by 15.37 per cent to 1,33,486 units in August.

Overall, 27 stocks in Sensex gained led by Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp, Maruti Suzuki, HUL, ICICI Bank, M&M, L&T, Sesa Goa, Jindal Steel, Tata Steel, Tata Power, Wipro and ONGC.