Sensex jumps 258 pts to end at two-month high on short covering ahead of F&O expiry

Mumbai: A set of strong corporate earnings numbers gave the market enough comfort as the Sensex soared by over 258 points Tuesday to end at 27,376, a 2-month high, with covering of short positions ahead of derivatives expiry making the job easier. The big domestic trigger coming up next is Union budget, which is slated for 1 February. Encouraging results from blue-chips led by HDFC Bank, Tata Communications and HCL Tech got investors going, with mood turning positive after a higher opening in Europe. The 30-share pack resumed higher and moved in a range of 27,393.35 and 27,140.85 before ending at 27,375.58, a sharp gain of 258.24 points, or 0.95 percent. This is its highest closing since 10 November, 2016, when it closed at 27,517.68. It had gained 82.84 points in the previous session. The NSE 50-share Nifty also recaptured the 8,400-mark by rising 84.30 points, or 1 percent, to end at 8,475.80. [caption id=“attachment_2411528” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] “The market extended gains with increasing focus on the upcoming budget which induced participants for short-covering ahead of the expiry tomorrow (Thursday). Positive quarter results have also influenced the investors to participate in the pre-budget rally,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services. The rupee too closed higher against the dollar. But traders remained cautious ahead of the Union budget which will throw light on how the government spends money on various social and infrastructure projects. HDFC Bank ended 1.84 percent higher after net profit grew 15.14 percent to Rs 3,865.33 crore for the December quarter. HT Media went up 1.32 percent after the company put up a similar show, helped by higher other income and lower tax expenses. Tata Communications surged 5.35 per cent after an over 12-fold jump in December quarter profit. In the domestic market, 26 stocks in the 30-share Sensex team ended higher while the remaining lost. Metals firmed up 1.69 percent, followed by auto (1.67 percent), power (1.43 percent), oil and gas (1.31 percent), capital goods (1.26 percent), PSU (1.12 percent) and banking (0.86 percent). Bajaj Auto came out on top with gains of 3.42 percent. M&M rose 2.68 percent, Adani Ports 2.41 percent, Coal India 1.96 percent, L&T 1.88 percent and Tata Motors (1.74 percent). But Bharti Airtel fell 1 percent, followed by Infosys, HUL and ICICI Bank. Broader markets also traded in a positive zone. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices rose 0.96 percent and 0.85 percent, respectively. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 288.80 crore yesterday, as per provisional data. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was up 0.22 percent while Shanghai Composite edged higher 0.18 percent. However, Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.55 percent. European shares were trading higher too. There was a element of uncertainty over US President Donald Trump’s policies and his decision to pull out from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. The market breadth remained positive as 1,613 shares ended higher, 1,121 closed lower while 204 ruled steady. The total turnover on BSE hit Rs 3,923.57 crore, higher than Rs 3,094.30 crore in the previous trading session.