Monday, May 8 2006 17:05 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Mumbai: Sustained rally in petrochem giant Reliance Industries (RIL) pushed the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) sensitive index (sensex) above the 12,500 mark for the first time to close at 12,462.47, up by 102.77 points and extended the gaining streak for the seventh straight session.

The index displayed a remarkable gain of 627.45 points or5.30 per cent since April 28. RIL, after hitting a new intra-day high of Rs 1169.80, closed at historic high of Rs 1155.65, revealing a steep rallyof Rs 46.15 over the previous close of Rs 1099.50. Operators went on a buying spree in RIL after the news that the company was in talk to purchase equity in Pakistan PTA, a major producer of purified terephthalic acid (PTA). The BSE 30-share index opened firm at 12,393.22 and soonshot up to a new intra-day high of 12,511.07.

Later, it eased to end at 12,462.47, still revealing a good gain of 0.83 per cent the previous close of 12,359.70.

Meanwhile, at the NSE the S&P CNX Nifty firmed up by 24.50 points or 0.67 per cent to end at a new high of 3693.15.

According to market participants, firm global advices also aided the strong sentiment. At the Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 138.88 points and the Nasdaq Composite Index by 18.67 points last Friday.

Similarly, on the Asian front, Nikkei firmed up by 137.90 points, the Hang Seng by 287.86 points, Taiwan by 103.61 ptsand Singapore ST by 25.36 pts at the close today.