Stock of the index heavyweight plunges 4.45 per cent.
The S&P CNX Nifty on Thursday crossed the psychological 5,000 mark, for the first time since May 21, 2008, on the back of sustained buying by foreign funds and on news of a speedy economic recovery. Rally in other Asian stocks and strong US economic data also boosted the market.
The Nifty opened at 4,958.55 and soared to 5,003.05. However, after hitting the 5,000 mark, it slipped to a low of 4,944.15. It finally ended on a flat note at 4,965.55, up 7.15 points, or 0.14 per cent.
US markets gained smartly yesterday as strong industrial output data suggested that the recession was easing. Energy and manufacturing companies benefited from the data, which indicated improved industrial demand. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.12 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.45 per cent.
Asian markets also ended on a firm note. The Hang Seng moved up 1.71 per cent and the Nikkei was up 1.68 per cent. The Shanghai Composite Index surged 2.02 per cent.
Meanwhile, the Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitive Index, Sensex, touched 16,820.02, its highest in 16 months. The index pared early gains as weakness in the Reliance Industries scrip and selective profit-taking weighed on the market. The index moved between zones and finally ended flat at 16,711.11, up 34.07 points, or 0.20 per cent.
BSE TECk and IT indexes soared 1.92 per cent each. The auto index followed with a gain of 1.46 per cent on reports of rise in automobile sales during the past month. The oil & gas index slipped 2.86 per cent.
ACC was the prominent gainer On Thursday, up 3.65 per cent. It was followed by Hindalco (3.62 per cent), Jaiprakash Associates (3.28 per cent), Bharti Airtel (3.13 per cent) and Maruti Suzuki (3.08 per cent). Bharati Shipyard touched to its yearly high by rising 2.64 per cent to Rs 214.15 after the company said it had raised stake in Great Offshore to 22.5 per cent. Grasim Industries, Wipro, Infosys, TCS, HDFC Bank, Hindustan Unilever and Mahindra & Mahindra were up 1-3 per cent.
Reliance was the major laggard and slipped 4.45 per cent to Rs 2,086 after Petroleum Trust sold 10.5 million shares in a block deal at Rs 2,125 per share. Tata Steel and ITC were the other major losers, down 1.97 per cent and 1.02 per cent, respectively.
The market breadth was negative. Out of 2,888 shares traded, 1,574 declined, 1,223 advanced and 91 were unchanged on the BSE.
“The market has gone up by 5,000 points, driven by strong liquidity, diminishing monsoon concerns and overall positive advance tax numbers. This has happened in spite of Reliance not performing On Thursday” said Anil Advani (head of research), SBICAP Securities Ltd.
