Nifty ends with modest gains; Auto sales revive

It was yet another day of consolidation for the market as Nifty kept drifting in the range of 5600-5650. Analysts "believe consolidation is an intermediate pause" in an otherwise medium term uptrend. Auto companies hogged limelight in today's trade after sales accelerated ahead at full speed at the onset the festive season.

A minor improvement in the manufacturing growth data also boosted the positive sentiment. Among the sectoral indices, Consumer Durables was the outperformer, up by 5.26%, followed by Auto sector up 2.26%. Realty and Power were also up by more than a percent each. FMCG witnessed profit-booking and was down by about a percent.

The Sensex closed at 18561.70 up 56.32 points or 0.30% and the Nifty ended at 5641.35 up 21.65 points or 0.39%. About 1643 shares advanced, 1141 shares declined, and 673 shares remain unchanged.

Tata Motors, Bharti Airtel, Cipla, Wipro and Reliance Infra were top gainers. HUL, ONGC, ITC, GAIL and HDFC Bank were top losers.

Maruti and M&M gained about 1.80%, while Tata Motors was up by more than 4%.

Earnings will remain in focus in the coming sessions. Apollo Tyres, Wipro, and Union Bank are some of the prominent stocks announcing their Q2 FY13 results tomorrow.