Sensex up 116 points in early trade

The BSE benchmark index Sensex up by over 116 points in the opening trade today, extending yesterday's gains on sustained buying by funds and retailers, tracking a firming trend in the Asian region.

The 30-share barometer which had gained 29.63 in the previous session, added 116.29 points, or 0.63 per cent to 18,455.29.

All the sectoral indices led by realty and auto were trading in the positive territory with gains up to 1.10 per cent.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty moved up by 32.60 points, or 0.59 per cent, to 5,604.00.

Brokers said buying by funds and retail investors in line with a firming trend in the Asian region following overnight rally on the US markets on hopes that lawmakers would find a way to avert a fiscal crisis, besides upbeat housing data, influenced the trading sentiments here.

In the Asian region, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose by 1.02 per cent, while the Japan's Nikkei by 0.49 per cent in early trade today. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 1.65 per cent higher yesterday.

GLOBAL MARKET NEWS

Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange rose 0.2 percent. The MSCI-Asia Pacific index excluding Japan was up 0.6 percent.

U.S. stocks bounced higher for a second consecutive session on Monday as investors were encouraged by the early atmosphere surrounding talks to tackle the nation's fiscal crunch.

Asian shares rose on Tuesday on hopes of a compromise in the U.S. fiscal crisis, while the euro fell after Moody's Investors Service scrapped France's top-notch credit rating, reminding investors of the protracted euro zone debt crisis.

FACTORS TO WATCH

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram will be in Bangalore for a meeting with the chief ministers of South Zone states.

The Reserve Bank of India Governor Duvvuri Subbarao will give an address on 'G 20 and India' in Mumbai (Event starts at 1230 GMT)

... contd.

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