Mumbai, Nov 16 (IANS) Buoyed by the positive weekend numbers on industrial output and cues from the government on its divestment plans, Indian equities continued to trade firm Monday afternoon, with a key index ruling 201.89 points above its previous close.
The sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) opened higher at 16,893.11 points, against Friday’s close at 16,848.83 points, and soon shot up to a high of 17,055.44 points within 15 minutes into the trading session.

At 2.49 p.m., the index was trading at 17,050.72 points, up 201.89 points or 1.20 percent from its last closing figure.

At the National Stock Exchange (NSE), the broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty was also ruling in the green around the same time, breaching the 5,000-point mark at 5,061.95 points, with a gain of 1.26 percent, over the previous close at 4,998.95 points.

Broader market indices were also trading in the green, with the BSE midcap index ruling 1.27 percent higher and the BSE small cap index 1.26 percent up.

The government had Friday said all ministries have been asked to compile a list of state-run firms for sale of stake and listing on stock exchanges, even as it expected partial divestment in at least three such firms by the end of this fiscal.

Disinvestment Secretary Sunil Mitra said as per data available for 2007-08, there were 10 listed state-run firms with less than 10 percent public holding, while 50 others met the criteria for divestment in terms of profits and net worth.

Statistics on India’s industrial production a day earlier showed a 9.1-percent growth in September, compared to 6 percent in the corresponding month last year, in yet another sign of economic recovery in the country.