Markets close with good gains

New Delhi: Markets staged a smart comeback rally on Tuesday with the indices closing with good gains.

Sensex finally closed the day with 169 points at 12,624, still below the 13,000 level. The Nifty closed at 3,690, up 57 points.

The midcaps lagged behind, the index managed to gain 27 points to close at 4,713. However, the market breadth didn't look impressive, with 615 advances to 423 declines.

Firming Asian markets and overnight gains at US markets too influenced the sentiment in India. IT stocks led the rally with Infosys, Satyam, Wipro and TCS saw heavy buying.

Banks stocks also shined on Tuesday, with most of them recovering Monday's losses.

BHEL was the star performer of the day, as the stock notched up Rs 100 rupees to close at 2,255 after the company reported a 42 per cent jump in its net profit.