Punjab, Sept. 21 -- The Sensex closed 564.03 points higher at 74,858.99 and the Nifty added 67.90 to 23,414.30 - the first real gain after six consecutive weekly declines. Pharma, FMCG and realty led.
Read the breadth, not the headline
The index rose 0.76%. Market breadth was negative, and midcaps and smallcaps were weak.
That combination - index up, breadth down - means a small number of large stocks did the lifting while most of the market did not participate. It is the signature of bargain buying in heavyweights rather than of a broad change in sentiment.
The Nifty's 0.29% against the Sensex's 0.76% says the same thing from another angle.
What helped
Softer crude, mainly. Brent has come back toward $104 as Saudi Arabia works to res...