Mumbai: Stocks led by the top heavyweight Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) and old economy stocks made a strong turnaround aiding the SENSEX to break three-week losing string and to gain by 2.94 per cent over the week on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on June 8 on consistent buying by punters.

Though continued net sales by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) and India's largest institution Unit Trust of India (UTI) which is facing acute liquidity crisis remained a cause for concern, speculators and retail investors reacted positively to a persistent flow of reports that both Pakistan and India were not willing any nuclear conflict.

Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's willingness to meet Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee at the Asian security conference at Almaty during the week with Vajpayee making it clear that India was ready for talks over Kashmir provided cross-border infiltration stopped helped ease the war fears.

Wary of reported tough talk by Home Minister L K Advani renewing the threat of military action if Pakistan failed to hand over suspected terrorists wanted by India, investors heavily unloaded their holdings reacting to fresh travel warnings by the US and the UK to their citizens on June 6.

PTI