The stock market has recorded the fastest ever 1,000-point rally, with the 30-scrip BSE Sensex gaining 1,001 points in 12 trading days between October 28 and November 18. The rise followed immediately after the market witnessed a 1,114-point drop in 17 trading sessions between October 4 and October 28.
In May 2004, the Sensex had lost over 1,000 points in just nine trading sessions after the exit of the National Democratic Alliance but took 89 days to recover from the fall. The latest rally beats that record.
The top 10 Sensex heavyweights, which were responsible for the 1,000-point fall in October, contributed over 50 per cent of the recovery.
Sensex heavyweight Reliance Industries added 105.48 points, with the stock recovering from Rs 741.25 on October 28 to an all-time high of 825.50 on November 18. Top gainers were Infosys(105.21 points) ITC (66.86 points), ICICI Bank (63.47 points) and Larsen & Toubro (43.27 points).
The BSE Sensex may rise further as ICICI Bank, ITC, State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, ONGC, Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Grasim are currently quoting below their October 4 highs.
ICICI Bank, for example, is now trading at Rs 537.60 compared with its price of Rs 589.45 on October 4.
The BSE Sensex has gained 13.01 per cent in the last 12 trading days compared with its decline of 12.67 per cent in 17 trading days in October 2004. The Nifty had declined 13 per cent and recovered 13.13 per cent.
Almost 97 per cent of stocks had participated in the October decline, with 2,479 losers and 90 gainers. In the current rally, 83 per cent or 2,479 stocks recovered from the October 28 level while 348 stocks continued to be losers.
When it comes to market capitalisation, a market cap worth 13.68 per cent {Rs 312,253 crore (Rs 3122.53 billion)} was lost in October. So far, 12.33 per cent or Rs 243,266 crore (Rs 2432.66 billion) have been recovered.
Of the 119 sectors studied by the Business Standard Research Bureau, 116 had recovered. Mini steel, glass and packaging top the gainers' list. The information technology sector has gained market cap by 13.80 per cent to Rs 3,04,632 crore (Rs 3046.32 billion) and the automobile sector by more than 18 per cent.
The other major sectors that performed well in the rally are refineries (11.74 per cent), power (9.97 per cent), pharmaceuticals (11.36 per cent), telecom (11.89 per cent), shipping (11.23 per cent) and cement (15.83 per cent).
