Sensex up 17.45% in April; best in 10 yrs

The rally was also powered by expectations India’s economy would pick up later this year.

The 30-share BSE index jumped 401.50 points to 11,403.25,its highest since Oct. 14 last year. It rose 0.65 per cent in the holiday-shortened week,taking the weekly winning streak to eight and matching the run of gains in September to October 2007.

The benchmark rose 17.45 per cent in April,making it the best-performing major Asian index this month.

Outsourcer Infosys Technologies,energy giant Reliance Industries and private-sector lender ICICI Bank were among the major gainers as the rally drew fence-sitters into the market.

“There was a lot of money sitting on the sidelines,and once momentum in a market picks up,the people sitting on the sidelines automatically jump into it,” Ambareesh Baliga,vice president at Karvy Stock Broking,said.

Much of the early rise was led by short-covering on the last day of monthly derivatives and then the momentum swept the

market higher despite a four-day weekend ahead and concerns of a possible flu pandemic in some countries.

The market is closed on Thursday as Mumbai votes in national elections and for a local holiday on Friday.

All but one of the index components rose while in the broader market,advancers led losers 1,436 to 1,031 on above-average volume of 419.6 million shares.

The benchmark index,which has leapt 42 per cent since hitting a 2009 low on March 6,could face resistance next week as political uncertainties come back to the fore ahead of election results due on May 16.

“I don’t think this momentum can be sustained,because in May the election will start playing on the mind of investors,” T.S. Harihar,senior vice president at ICICI Securities,said.

“This could lead to a correction before the results are announced.”

Added Karvy’s Baliga: “No one knows who is going to come to power and all signs point to a very fractured coalition. Then how can one justify such a huge rally even if fundamentals may have slightly improved for the better. It has no logic.” However,many analysts agree that over the longer term,a sustained recovery could be in the offing.

“We believe there are a number of reasons to be positive about India’s growth prospects. Individually,none of them are hugely powerful,but collectively they should drive a recovery later this year which is likely to gain momentum in 2010,” HSBC economist Robert Prior-Wandesforde said.

No. 2 software-services firm Infosys rose 5.3 per cent to 1,507.30 rupees. Reliance Industries,which has the biggest weighting in the main index,firmed 3.8 per cent to 1,802.70 rupees. The stocks jumped 13.8 per cent and 18.3 per cent,respectively,in April.

Private-sector lender ICICI Bank jumped 8.7 per cent to 477.75 rupees,taking gains for the month to 43.6 per cent — its biggest monthly rise in just over nine years. Shares in top telecom Bharti Airtel gained 3.25 per cent to 749.30 rupees,after it reported a 21 per cent rise in quarterly profit and announced a maiden dividend and two-for-one stock split.

The 50-share NSE index rose 3.3 per cent to 3,473.95.

Asian markets were higher after two days of losses,with MSCI’s measure of Asian markets excluding Japan rising 2.6 per cent. Japan was closed for a holiday.