Sensex up on Sensex jumps 2.31% on hopes for new measures in interim budget

Media reports that the forthcoming interim budget may offer tax sops and sector-specific stimulus package boosted the domestic bourses today, 6 February 2009. Buying was witnessed in metal, banking and IT stocks. Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) soared. The BSE 30-share Sensex jumped 209.98 points or 2.31%.

As per the provisional data released by the stock exchanges after trading hours, foreign funds today, 6 February 2009, bought shares worth a net Rs 117.23 crore and domestic funds acquired stocks worth Rs 131.67 crore.

The market pared gains for a brief period in mid-afternoon trade as European market which opened after Indian market came off higher level due to caution ahead of the release of what is likely to be a dismal US non-farm payroll data for January 2009. The market bounced back again in late trade. Earlier in the day, the market had pared gains in afternoon trade after a rally in mid-morning trade triggered by firm Asian stocks. A worse-than-expected deterioration in the job market may dampen sentiment. The battered US stocks have found support in the past few days on some positive data, the latest being a solid January sales report from retailer Wal-Mart. The US economy is in recession for more than a year.