Sensex rallies 216 points on 7th Pay Commission approval, GST hopes

Mumbai: Shaking off Brexit jitters, market today rallied nearly 216 points on the back of a string of government measures aimed at reviving the economy and talk that the GST Bill may be passed in the upcoming monsoon session of Parliament.

Auto and retail stocks were the big movers after the government approved implementation of the 7th Pay Commission for its employees and pensioners, which had recommended an overall hike of 23.5 percent.

There was more upside in store after the government today asserted that it has "enough" numbers on its side for passage of the GST Bill in the monsoon session, which commences on July 18.

The Sensex stayed in the positive terrain throughout and closed up 215.84 points, or 0.81 percent, at 26,740.39.

The 50-share NSE Nifty took back the crucial 8,200 level and ended the day at 8,204.00, a gain of 76.15 points, or 0.94 percent -- its biggest single-session jump since June 15.

From the 30-share Sensex pack, 24 scrips ended higher and one remained unchanged.

Short-covering too helped as buying gathered pace after a firming trend in Asia, in line with overnight gains in the US, boosted by hopes that global policymakers will come up with strong measures and fresh stimulus to neutralise Brexit spillover.

Appreciation in the rupee gave more ammo to bulls, though caution prevailed ahead of tomorrow's monthly derivative expiry, dealers said.

Hero MotoCorp emerged as the top gainer, climbing 3.95 percent on hopes that vehicle sales might pick up after the government cleared 7th Pay panel recommendations.

Bajaj Auto, M&M, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors all advanced by up to 1.53 percent.

NTPC too rose 2.36 percent, followed by Wipro 2.21 percent, Power Grid 2.60 percent and TCS 1.54 percent.

BSE realty topped the chart rising 3.15 percent, with power racking up 1.66 percent, auto 1.51 percent and IT 1.39 percent.

Broader markets too were in a bullish form, with BSE small-cap rising 1.31 percent and the mid-cap up 0.98 percent.

Foreign portfolio investors net sold shares worth Rs 190.43 crore yesterday, according to provisional data.

Japan's Nikkei ended 1.59 percent higher while Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose 1.31 percent. The Shanghai composite index gained 0.65 percent.

Europe was trading in the positive zone, with the London FTSE rising 2.16 percent, Paris 2.25 percent and Frankfurt 1.55 percent.

"The market scaled levels of 8,200 on the back of

confidence-building measures. The market uptrend is expected to continue taking support from positive cues from European markets," said Gaurang Shah, Vice-President, Geojit BNP Paribas.

"If the market manages to cross levels of 8,300, which is facing strong resistance levels, we could be heading towards 8,500."

The market breadth remained positive as 1,851 stocks ended in the green, 751 closed in the red and 186 stayed flat.

"Domestic as well as global stocks rose on speculation that central banks in the UK, Japan and ECB will resort to additional monetary stimulus to counter the potential drag on global economy arising from the UK's decision to leave the EU," said Shreyash Devalkar, Fund Manager - Equities, BNP Paribas Mutual Fund.

Total turnover firmed up to Rs 2,699.45 crore, from Rs 2,635.32 crore yesterday.