Market latches on to GST hopes, Sensex jumps 183 points

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The Winter Session got off to a start on Thursday, which is expected to see the government reach out to the Opposition in an attempt to strike a compromise on a goods and services tax, which is billed as the biggest tax reform since Independence.

Mumbai: Market saw a turnaround in fortunes on Thursday when the benchmark BSE Sensex snapped its two-day fall and bounced almost 183 points to close at 25,958.63 -- an over two-week high -- on hopes of a GST breakthrough in Parliament and mixed cues from global markets. The Winter Session got off to a start on Thursday, which is expected to see the government reach out to the Opposition in an attempt to strike a compromise on a goods and services tax, which is billed as the biggest tax reform since Independence.

Pick-up in rollover of November derivative contracts to the December series later in the session helped. Covering-up of short positions by traders and value-buying in several blue-chips buoyed sentiment. The BSE 30-share gauge ended up 182.89 points, or 0.71 per cent, at 25,958.63 -- a level last seen on November 9. The broad-based NSE Nifty also closed the day higher by 52.20 points, or 0.67 per cent, at 7,883.80.

"Market momentum gained on the expiry day as the optimism increased about the GST Bill. European market has gained today with expectation of further easing by ECB at the next week policy meet," said Vinod Nair, Head-Fundamental Research, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services. Tata Motors ruled firm as it gained the most by rising 5.51 per cent. Sun Pharma was up 3.96 per cent after the company announced that it has shelved plans to invest in wind energy business in the US.

Hindalco and Tata Steel rose up to 1.76 per cent as prices of base metal pack recouped at the London Metal Exchange. Vedanta held steady at Rs 90.30. In contrast, Dr Reddy's was the hardest hit, down 8.21 per cent, on reports that US FDA might hold back approval of the company's fresh drugs and stop import if no corrective action is taken.

In the sectoral space, realty led the charge, followed by auto, metal, consumer durables and power. The broader markets continued to shine on persistent buying by investors, with the small-cap index adding 0.45 per cent and mid-cap 0.26 per cent. Foreign investors remained net sellers as they sold shares worth Rs 540.12 crore on Tuesday, as per provisional data.

Major stocks in Asia closed mixed with an upward bias while Europe was trading higher in late-morning deals. All eyes are on ECB, which has signaled its readiness to scale up its bond purchase to fight weak inflation.