Sensex finally pips the Dow

By agencies   |   Thursday, 30 March 2006, 20:30 IST
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MUMBAI: The 30-share Sensex of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) gained nearly 100 points Wednesday and has now moved past the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) of the U.S. The Sensex closed at 11,183, after touching a new intra-day high of 11,197.64. On the other hand, the Dow lost 95.57 points at the end of Tuesday's trading session to close at 11,154.54. The broader S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) settled the day at 3,354.20, up 29.20 points. The expiry of the derivative contracts that will happen on Thursday also pushed the index further northwards. Analysts, however, say, that even though the Sensex may have crossed the Dow, it is in no way comparable to the U.S. index. "Technology stocks took the Sensex northwards on Wednesday. The index has just crossed the Dow in absolute terms. If one takes into account the market capitalization, the Sensex is just one-tenth of the Dow," said the research head of a domestic brokerage. Meanwhile Indian shares climbed 1 percent to a new all-time peak Thursday as software services firms were boosted by a jump in tech-laden Nasdaq index to a five-year high. Technology firms, which get two-thirds of their revenue from overseas, were also helped by a decline in the rupee. The 30-issue BSE index rose to a record 11,301.19 points. Foreign funds have moved $3.7 billion so far this year into Indian stocks, helping lift the BSE index 20 percent. The 50-issue NSE index rose 1 percent to 3,387.45 points.