Mumbai: The Sensex rallied sharply and soared by 156 points at close for the second session in a row in brisk activity at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) today (Mar 1, 2004) on hectic buying by retailers and operators as well as heavy purchases by Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs).

PSU (Public Sector Undertaking) stocks hogged the limelight as retailers rushed to make commitments in the sector on the back of reports that the Government was almost sure to overshoot the revised target of mopping up Rs 14,500 crore from disinvestment.

Software counters too were in keen demand on expectations of a strong turnaround with the sector doing exceedingly well.

Starting on a weak note at 5649.30, the BSE Benchmark 30-share Index later recovered smartly and rallied sharply throughout to end at 5823.17 as against last Friday's close of 5667.51, a hefty net rise of 155.66 points or 2.75 per cent.

An index heavyweight Dr Reddy's Lab, however, reeled under pressure and closed with a sharp fall as the company suffered a huge setback in its two-year legal battle with Pfizer in the patent infringement case.

FIIs, which were net sellers during last week, reportedly were heavy buyers in blue-chip counters.

Retailers and operators made heavy commitments on the first day of the week as well as the new contract for the Futures and Options segment.

HPCL, ONGC, BHEL, Bharti Televenture, Infosys Tech, SBI, Satyam Computers, RIL, MTNL, L&T, Grasim, Bajaj Auto, HDFC, ICICI Bank, ITC, Tisco, Tata Motors, GACL and BSES registered impressive gains on heavy buying support.