Mumbai: Led by Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) and Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), equities rallied sharply lifting the SENSEX by past 3,180-resistance level at close on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on August 30 on heavy purchases by a leading bull operator as well as some foreign funds.

After a weak start at 3,110.98, the BSE benchmark 30-share index turned better and gradually moved upwards to the intra-day high at 3,182.53 before ending at 3,181.23 as against a close of 3,114.16 on August 29, netting a rise of 67.07 points or 2.15 per cent.

The broad-based BSE-100 Index shot up by 33.46 points to 1,580.55 from previous close of 1,547.91.

A leading bull operator was believed to be behind the sudden stocks rally, having made hectic purchases in top heavyweight counters like HLL, RIL, Tisco, Telco, HPCL, Dr Reddy's Lab, ICICI Bank, SBI and several others.

Foreign funds reportedly made purchases in new economy stocks like Infosys Tech, Zee Telefilms, Hughes Software, Mastek, CMC Ltd, Digital Global and Wipro.

Investors, who had turned cautious following delay in privatisation of HPCL and BPCL with postponement of the meeting of Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment (CCD) for the fourth time in a row, made fresh commitments on the back of increased speculative activity.

The market has turned optimistic about a strong rally since the SENSEX broke the 3,180-resistance level at close.

However, cement stocks like Grasim Ind and L&T recorded marked falls due to selling pressure.

PTI