It was a fantastic close for the market near the highest point of the day after brushing off the 50 bps CRR hike to 7%. The markets dipped immediately after the monetary policy declared but having realised that the CRR hike is more of a liquidity management tool than any interst rate signal to the market. The discount has narrowed to just about 20 points.

Heavies like L&T, HDFC, BHEL and ABB contributed significantly to the rally. L&T was up 7% HDFC was up 6% and BHEL was up 5.6%.

Broader markets also participated giving markets an excellent breadth.

All the BSE sector indices closed in green. Capital goods index was the top gainer followed by metal, FMCG and realty stocks.

The RBI has increased the CRR by 50 bps to 7% from 6.5%. Reverse Repo cap was removed. Bond yields have moved up. CRR is the amount the commercial banks need to maintain with the RBI. The amount is based on a fixed percentage computed on each bank's total time and demand liabilities. A CRR of 7% means that the banks need to set aside Rs 7 for every Rs 100 they receive in deposits.