The BSE benchmark Sensex continued its upward march for the fourth week in a row by surging over 457 points to settle the week at about 2-1/2-month high of 17,429.98 due to all-round buying on the back of clarity on General Anti-Tax Avoidance Rules (GAAR) rules and upbeat global sentiment.
The Sensex ended down by over 90 points on Monday after the Reserve Bank announced some measures to stem the rupee fall which fell short of market expectations.
The RBI hiked FII limit in government bonds to $20 billion while allowing up to $10 billion via overseas borrowings route by domestic corporates for refinancing their rupee loans.
The steps are expected to curb the rupee’s fall, which has lost over 26 per cent in the last one year.
But it has gained nearly 550 points in the last four days coinciding with the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, taking over charge of Finance portfolio and signalling speedy revival of the slowing economic growth.
Market players cheered the Finance Ministry’s proposal that the GAAR would not be applicable below a particular limit.
New plan to save euro zone
The sentiment was mainly boosted on Friday when reports from Europe suggested that a new plan is being worked out to support the ailing banks of the debt-ridden trading bloc, driving the Sensex to gain over 439 points.
Good capital inflows amid smart recovery in the rupee value and lower global crude oil prices too kept the market in positive terrain. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) infused over Rs 1,549 crore in the week, including provisional data of June 29.
The rupee had bounced back with a vengeance during the week by 154 paise or 2.69 per cent to 55.61 yesterday, after registering its all-time intra-trade low of 57.31 on June 22 and also logging a life-time closing low of 57.15 on the same day.
Sectoral indices’ performance
Buying was so strong that all 13 sectoral indices closed in the green between 0.54 per cent and 4.96 per cent with Power, Metal, Banking and Capital Goods sectors taking the lead.
The BSE benchmark Sensex resumed higher at 17,038.77 and hovered in a wide range of 17,448.48 and 16,815.87 before ending the week at 17,429.98, disclosing a gain of 457.47 points or 2.7 per cent.
The Sensex has gained by 1,464.82 points or 9.18 per cent in the straight four-week of rally.
The NSE 50-share Nifty also shot up by 132.85 points or 2.58 per cent to finish the week at 5,278.90. It also showed a gain of 437.30 points or 9.03 per cent in the last four weeks.