Brokers say technically, the Sensex has given a good close at 4844.98, up 96.21 points over its previous close, and there is a strong case for the Index to cross the 5000-mark over the next two days. According to dealers, market sentiment is tilting towards technology stocks as expectation of good results is building up.

On Monday, counters like Infosys, Satyam, Wipro, SSI and a host of other technology stocks gained substantial ground and closed strong. In fact, topped the A group turnover with Rs 683.93 crore followed by Himachal Futuristic with Rs 344.96 crore.

However, contrary to expectations, FMCG-major Hindustan Lever was one of the significant losers on Monday. After going ex-split, according to dealers, profit booking in the counter took the stock down. HLL entered the no-delivery mode today on the BSE for its 10-for-1 stock split.Thanks to a smart rally on Nasdaq, values opened strong in the morning, and with the help of sustained buying, showed handsome gains. The uptrend gathered momentum in the second half for the software stocks. Stocks like Satyam Computer, SSI, Wipro, Sterlite, and NIIT attracted huge buying and showed handsome gains.

Meanwhile, in the non-software segment, ITC recorded investement buying, and gained more than two per cent. The rally in ITC was very sharp from the day's low of Rs 770. Meanwhile, while HLL remained dull, Reliance managed to remain firm for a major part of the day.

Meanwhile, the BSE sensitive index opened at 4846.69 points, and closed at day's high of 4844.98 points. The low for the day was 4778.74 points. Similarily, the S&P CNX Nifty gained 26 points and closed at 1497 points. The low for the day was 1473.45 points, and the high was 1498.70 points. Meanwhile, the number of advances stood at 840, and the number of declines was at 543. At the same time, around 103 stocks remained unchanged. The trading volume on the BSE stood at Rs 3848.51 crore while on the NSE it stood at Rs 4767 crore.The only stock which hit the 16 per cent upper circuit was Padmini Polymer. The new circuit filter of 16 per cent in the top counters did not have major impact on the market sentiment. According to a dealer with a domestic broking house, technically the Sensex has given a good close on Monday. And over the next two trading sessions, there won't be much to look at Nasdaq for directions, since the bourse will be closed on Tuesday. ``I expect the operators to make good of the emerging situation and take the Sensex past the 5000-mark,'' said the dealer.

FII investment figures released by Sebi on Monday shows a net inflow of Rs 32.4 crore for last Friday. For Monday, dealers say there was substantial FII buying in the market, and Tuesday's figure is also expected to remain positive.

The stocks which gained more than 7.9 per cent were Padmini Poly, Satyam Comp, Wipro, SSI, Sterlite, Moser Baer, Vikas WSP, Fortune Info, Crest Com, ITI, Alok Textiles, Aurobindo Pharma, VXL Inst, Peerless Shipping, GV Films, Advent Com, Kaashyap Radiant, Onward Tech. Other gainers for the day were Pentamedia, DSQ Soft, NIIT, Tata Steel, Century, Aptech, BSES, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Hughes Soft, Sun Pharma, Shyam Tele, Carr Aircon, Nalco, Reckitt Col, UPL, Adani Exports, Mastek.

At the same time, stocks which dipped more than 7.9 per cent were Escorts, Eupharma, IG Petro, Movilex Irr, Emco Trans, Cauvery Soft. Other losers for the day were Excel Ind, Daewoo Motors, ICES Soft, KEC Int, S Kumar Synthetic and Kopran Drugs.FIIs pull out Rs 990 crore in June
FIIs have pulled out Rs 990 crore from the Indian markets during June. However, defying the FII sell-off, the Sensex has gained more than 400 points - from 4325 on June 1 to 4749 on June 30 - during the same period. According to Sebi figures released on Monday, for the entire month of June, while gross purchase of equities by FIIs was at Rs 5125.1 crore, gross sale was at Rs 6114.6 crore, giving a net outflow figure of almost Rs 990 crore, one of the highest during the recent months. In dollar terms this translates into $230 million. According to dealers, volatility of the rupee and uncertainties about the US interest rates were the major factors for the sell-off by the FIIs during June.

-- Partha P Sinha