Indices up on short covering

STOCK REPORT

Key indices ended higher today driven by investor buying after an extended holiday and short covering due to October derivatives contract expiry, dealers said.

Asian and European markets were also firm after US Federal Reserve Wednesday left key interest rates unchanged for the third consecutive month.

Oil retailers were the worst performers even as global crude oil stayed above $61 a barrel on New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude oil prices gained after data Wednesday showed fall in US oil stockpiles last week.

The fire at Reliance Industries' hydro-treatment unit in Jamnagar Wednesday also gave rise to fears of disruptions in oil supply. Shares of Reliance Industries ended down 1.6 per cent at Rs 1,174.95 rupees.

Today, Bombay Stock Exchange Sensex ended at 12698.41, up 75.13 points or 0.6 per cent, after touching a low of 12636.16 and a high of 12718.31 intraday.

National Stock Exchange Nifty ended at 3677.55, up 20.25 points or 0.5 per cent, after touching a low of 3651.20 and a high of 3686.85 intraday. The combined turnover on both exchanges was over Rs 123 billion, up 64 per cent from Monday.

Lead Nifty gainers were Oriental Bank of Commerce, up 7.4 per cent at Rs 258.05, Mahindra and Mahindra, up 5.7 per cent at Rs 731.60, and ICICI Bank, up 5.4 per cent at Rs 759.35.

Mahindra and Mahindra hit a new 52-week high of Rs 749.90 today after posting Jul-Sep net profit of Rs 3.86 billion (including exceptional income), up 146 per cent from a year ago, against analysts' estimates of Rs 2.05 billion.

The company's net profit included Rs 884 million from Tech Mahindra initial public offer proceeds and octroi refund of Rs 267.90 million.