Sensex rallies most since Oct on stimulus hopes, oil rebound

Market benchmark Sensex made a strong comeback today by logging its biggest single-day gain since October and in process recovered from over 20-month lows, tracking a relief-rally in global shares on hopes of a fresh stimulus from the euro zone and recovery in crude oil.
The BSE barometer snapped a two-day losing run to recover by 473.45 points to 24,435.66, while the broader NSE Nifty reclaimed the 7,400 mark.
But the rally wasn't enough to wipe off earlier losses from the week as Sensex fell marginally by 19.38 points or 0.07 per cent while Nifty shed 15.35 points or 0.20 per cent, making it the third consecutive weekly drop.

"Market witnessed a relief rally in expectation of an additional stimulus from the ECB by March... Chinese data is pointing to stabilisation in the economy," said Vinod Nair Head-Fundamental Research Geojit BNP Paribas Financial.
Asian and European markets were positive after hints of more monetary stimulus by the European Central Bank (ECB) to help struggling euro zone economy and crude prices rebounding from over 12-year lows. In the international market, Brent crude rose USD 1.52, or 5.2 per cent, to USD 30.77 a barrel.
Sentiment also got a boost from the rupee, which rebounded from 29-month lows by reclaiming Rs 67-level.

The Sensex had resumed higher at 24,122.06 and firmed up further to 24,472.88 before finishing 473.45 points or 1.98 per cent higher at 24,435.66, its biggest single-day gain since October 5.

The gauge had lost 517.63 points in the last two sessions.
The 50-issue NSE Nifty after reclaiming 7,400, advanced to hit a high of 7,433.40 points, finally settling 145.65 points or 2 per cent higher at 7,422.45.
Shares of Idea Cellular plunged over 6 per cent, eroding Rs 2,529 crore from its market valuation, after the company suffered a decline in consolidated net profit.
Besides, InterGlobe Aviation, which operates India's largest airline IndiGo nosedived 19 per cent on concerns over the targeted fleet size by March due to delay in supply of more fuel-efficient planes by Airbus.

Mahindra & Mahindra, however, surged 4.50 per cent after it launched a downsized diesel engine variant to overcome ban.
In Asia, Japan and Hong Kong led gains triggered by hints of more stimulus from the European Central Bank. Nikkei closed 5.88 per cent higher, while Hang Seng index rose 2.9 per cent. Indexes in China, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan firmed up by 1.20 per cent to 2.11 per cent.
Back home, overall 26 counters from the 30-scrip Sensex
gained, while laggards included Bharti Airtel, HUL, Wipro and Infosys.
Major gainers were GAIL (7.99 pc), Maruti (5.53 pc), Tata Steel (5.35 pc), Hero MotoCorp (5.11 pc), SBI (4.81 pc), Dr Reddy's (4.55 pc), M&M (4.49 pc), ONGC (4.26 pc), Coal India (4.04 pc), NTPC (3.84 pc), Axis Bank (3.72 pc), L&T (3.60 pc), Asian Paints (3.03 pc) and Tata Motors (3.02 pc).

However, Bharti Airtel fell 3.41 per cent followed by HUL 0.54 per cent, Wipro (0.07 pc) and Infosys (0.05 pc).
Buying by retail investors too reemerged in broader markets helping the mid-cap and small-cap indexes to gain up to 2.25 per cent.
Among BSE sectoral indices, metal rose 4.32 per cent, followed by auto 3.65 per cent, oil&gas (2.95 pc), bankex (2.81 pc), capital goods (2.66 pc), utilities (2.76 pc), industrials (2.49 pc) and finance (2.48 pc).
The market breadth remained positive as 2,060 shares ended higher, 598 closed lower while 164 ruled steady. The total turnover rose to Rs 3,498.12 crore from Rs 3,007.27 crore yesterday.