Business

Sensex extends gains

MUMBAI: The Bombay Stock Exchange extended its rally to the third straight day on Friday as the benchmark Sensex closed 39.67 points up at a new peak of 13130.79 after bouncing from the initial lows.

The government's approval to construct 1,000 km expressways under Phase-VI of the National Highway Development Programme (NHDP) coupled with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's confidence in over 8 per cent gross domestic product (GDP) growth this fiscal buoyed sentiment.

The BSE 30-share sensitive index (Sensex) recovered from the day's low of 13017.84 and later closed at 13130.79 against Thursday's close of 13091.12.

The National Stock Exchange's S&P CNX Nifty closed at an all-time-high of 3805.35, a gain 15.15 points.

Shares of cement and construction companies hogged the limelight on news of clearance of expressways construction through public private partnership (PPP) on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis at a cost of Rs. 16,680 crore.

A surge in cement stocks was also aided by 11 per cent rise in cement production in October posted by cement major ACC, brokers said.

Commenting on inflation, which touched a four-month high of 5.41 per cent for the week ended October 21, Mr. Chidambaram said containing inflation was the government's `most immediate goal' and cautioned that some sectors of the economy were showing `signals of overheating.'

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were consistent buyers in the market.

Foreign institutional investors pumped in more than Rs. 1,709 crore in the cash segment, while mutual funds made net purchases of Rs. 512 crore in the initial three days of the week. The trading volume was relatively high at Rs. 4,034.07 crore. — PTI

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