Sensex up by over 441 pts in early trade

MUMBAI: The benchmark Sensex surged by over 441 points on Monday in early trade on heavy buying by funds and retailers, sparked off by RBI's announcement of fresh bouquet of measures to infuse more liquidity and government's over Rs 30,000-crore package to boost a slowing down economy.
    
The 30-share index, which had lost 264.55 points in the last session, shot up by  441.06 points, or 4.91 per cent at 9,406.26 on renewed buying in the stocks of realty, capital goods, auto, metals, banking, and oil and gas sectors.
    
The wide-based National Stock Exchange's Nifty also rose by 126.75 points, or 4.66 per cent, at 2,841.15 points.
    
The appreciating Indian rupee, which strengthened by 35 paise to 49.22 a dollar today, also had a positive impact on the trading.
    
The sentiments turned bullish after the Reserve Bank of India cut key short-term lending and borrowing rates by 100 basis points each and pumped in Rs 11,000 crore for housing and mirco industries to propel economic growth.
    
Analysts said expectations that rate cut would improve much needed liquidity in the financial sector and government's bailout package would generate demand, triggered an all-round buying by funds.
    
They said realty and capital goods sector stocks were leading the rally, providing a major support to the Sensex.
    
Realty sector stocks were top gainers in early trading, with the sector indice rising by 6.69 per cent at 1,805.34, followed by capital goods index that rose 4.81 per cent at 6,716.82.
    
The country's largest realty and developer DLF Ltd's stocks shot up by Rs 16.05, or 7.90 per cent at Rs 219.20, while Unitech Ltd gained Rs 2.70, or 8.77 per cent at Rs 33.50.
   
Among capital goods stocks, BHEL shot up by Rs 55, or 4.11 per cent at Rs 1,394, Larsen and Toubro by Rs 37.75, or 5.18 per cent at Rs 766.50 and ABB by Rs 15.60, or 3.54 per cent at Rs 456.20.
    
Besides, Reliance Industries, Reliance Infra, RCom, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, HDFC Ltd, Infosys Technologies, Satyam Computers, Ranbaxy, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Steel stocks were also trading in the green.
   
Meanwhile, among other Asian equity markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was up 6.12 per cent, while Japan's Nikkei gained 4.70 per cent in early trade.