Realty index up 5.41 pc on heavy buying

MUMBAI: Realty stocks rallied on the Bombay Stock Exchange on heavy buying at an attractive lower levels, lifting the segment index by 5.41 per cent.

The realty index surged by 85.02 points, or 5.41 per cent, to close at 1,645.32 points after touching an intra-day high of 1,651.01 and a low of 1,547.22 points, while the key benchmark Sensex ended 193.49 points, or 1.99 per cent, higher at 9,901.99.

Of the 14 constituents of the segment index, 13 ended in the positive zone with gains between 1.1 and 19.15 per cent.

Stock brokers attributed recovery in badly beaten realty stocks in the recent collapse, to emergence of buying at the prevailing lower levels.

They said expectations of cut in interest rates after inflation dipped to near zero level also supported today's rally in interest-sensitive stocks.

Speculations that BG Group plc and Hong Kong-based CLP Group are among suitors for the country's largest realty firm DLF Ltd's wind power business also influenced sentiments to some extent.