The market opened firm despite tepid cues from across the globe. Early gains were supported by metal and auto sectors. Manufacturing output for November, as measured by the HSBC Markit Purchase Managers' Index (PMI), which witnessed its fastest growth in six months, also supported the gains. The northward journey was marred by some retracement in the noon session. However, the indices resumed their upward climb in post-noon trade as the key European markets were trading in the positive zone. Finally, the key indices ended the session near the day's high.
 
The Sensex closed the day today 313.92 points (1.61%) higher at 19,835.17. The bellwether index touched an intraday high of 19,870.19 and a low of 19,575.15. The Nifty closed at 5,965.95, up 103.25 points (1.76%). The index scaled a high of 5,971 and encountered a trough of 5,865.55 mid-session.
 
The market breadth was positive today. The Sensex returned home with 24 gainers and six losers, while the Nifty ended with 40 stocks in the green and 10 in the red. The broader market continued to outperform the key indices. The BSE Mid-cap index surged 2.83% and the BSE Small-cap index soared 3.14%.

The top performers on the Sensex included Cipla (up 6.30%), Tata Steel (up 5.04%), Mahindra & Mahindra (4.53%), Tata Motors (up 4.13%) and Larsen & Toubro (up 4.04%). The losers were led by Bharti Airtel (down 2.51%), Hero Honda (down 2.28%), Wipro (down 1.34%), Maruti Suzuki (down 0.77%) and Hindustan Unilever (down 0.57%).
 
In the sectoral space, BSE Metal (up 3.39%), BSE PSU (up 3.18%), BSE Realty (up 3.11%), BSE Bankex (up 2.96%) and BSE Capital Goods (up 2.88%) were the top performers. On the flip side, BSE TECk (down 0.03%) was the lone sectoral loser.
 
The seasonally adjusted HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI)-a headline index designed to measure the overall health of the manufacturing sector-posted 58.4 in November, up from the October reading of 57.2. The latest reading pointed to a marked expansion of the Indian manufacturing sector. The rate of growth accelerated for a second successive month and was above the long-run average for the series.

Markets in Asia, which were soft in early trade, received a boost as data showed that Chinese manufacturing output was on the rise in November. The Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 55.2 from 54.7 in October, China's logistics federation said on its website today.  The HSBC China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index, a gauge of nationwide manufacturing activity, rose to 55.3 in November from 54.8 in October. The rise in the PMI shows manufacturing activity is accelerating and may add to concerns about overheating in the Chinese economy and strengthening inflation pressures, that could lead to further tightening measures.
 
The Shanghai Composite added 0.12%, the Hang Seng surged 1.05%, the Jakarta Composite jumped by 2.49%, the KLSE Composite ended 0.01% higher, the Nikkei 225 gained 0.51%, the Straits Times was up 1.30%, the Seoul Composite was up 1.30% and the Taiwan Weighted surged 1.76%.
 
The commerce ministry reported today that India's merchandise exports grew by 21.3% to $18 billion in October over the corresponding period a year ago, raising hopes that the country may be able to achieve the $200 billion exports target set for the current fiscal year. Imports during the period grew by 6.8% to $27.68 billion, leaving a trade deficit of $9.72 billion, according to data from the ministry of commerce issued today.
 
Markets in the US closed lower on Tuesday, but off the day's lows on nagging fears about the sovereign-debt crisis in Europe despite positive economic news. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of home values in 20 cities rose 0.6% in September from the corresponding period last year, the smallest gain since January. The gauge fell 0.8% from the previous month after adjusting for seasonal variations, the biggest drop since April 2009. Besides, The Conference Board's sentiment index increased to 54.1, topping analysts' forecast. The Institute for Supply Management-Chicago Inc said its business gauge advanced to the highest since April.
 
The Dow declined 46.47 points (0.42%) to 11,006.02. The S&P 500 shed 7.21 points (0.61%) to 1,180.55. The Nasdaq fell 26.99 points (1.07%) to 2,498.23.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers of stocks worth Rs889.46 crore on Tuesday. On the other hand, domestic institutional investors were net sellers, offloading equities worth Rs435.03 crore.