Bazaar Trend | Sensex opens higher by 170 points on Tuesday

The BSE benchmark Sensex surged by 170 points in opening trade on Tuesday on fresh buying by funds, driven by rally on the global bourses.

The 30-share index rose by 169.95 points to 16,525.98 points in the first five minutes of trade.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty gained 51.45 points at 4,951.15 points.

Buying by retail investors and covering-up of short positions by speculators further supported the uptrend, marketmen said.

Asian markets were trading in the positive zone following overnight gains in the US markets.

Hong Kong's benchmark Hang Seng rose 1.18 percent, while Tokyo's Nikkei rose by 1.88 percent in morning trade. Shanghai was up by 1.35 percent.

US markets closed higher by 1.17 percent last night after the US Institute of Supply Management said its manufacturing index climbed to 58.4 percent in January, the best number since 2004 and well ahead of the 50 percent that indicates growth.