Trading halted on India markets after poll surge

Monday, May 18, 2009 at 2:16 AM Posted by Beijing News


Trading was suspended on India's stock markets Monday when prices surged beyond the allowed upper limit as dealers welcomed the Congress party's clear election victory.

The benchmark 30-share Sensex rocketed more than 17 percent to 14,272.63, up 2,099.21 points, when the market re-opened after an initial two-hour halt following a 14 percent rise at opening.

"There will be no more trading for the day as the upper limit has been breached twice," a Bombay Stock Exchange spokesman told AFP by telephone.

The upper limits for indices are based on the quarterly close.

Twice in the day, trading came to a halt as investors piled in after Saturday's results, which put Congress in a strong position to enact long-awaited economic reforms and to revive growth.

"This was unprecedented trading activity. If this continues, there is a risk of over-heating for the markets," said Bhaskar Kapadia, a partner with brokerage Pyramid Securities.

"A lot of retail investors are waiting to just start buying again," he said.

Property, infrastructure and banking stocks were the main gainers.







A participant attends the 17th Life Ball in Vienna. AFP/Joe Klamar

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