Indian market sees best May in a decade; gains 28 pc returns

The month of May has turned out to be the most fruitful for Dalal Street this year, with investors reaping returns of as much as 28 per cent -- the highest gains seen in a decade in the month.

The month of May has turned out to be the most fruitful for Dalal Street this year, with investors reaping returns of as much as 28 per cent -- the highest gains seen in a decade in the month.

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The benchmark index Sensex gained about 3,000 points in May settling at 14,625.25 from 11,400 levels at the end of April.

The market behaved in a totally different trend from the past in May this year as usually investors prefer to book profits and get into a selling mood in the month.

An analysis of the returns provided by the Sensex in the months of May over the past 10 years shows five times the index had provided negative returns, while in the rest five years it had ended in the green territory.

The years when investors had reaped positive gains included 2007 (3.88 per cent), 2005 (9.11 per cent), 2003 (7.46 per cent), 2001 (3.2 per cent).

The Sensex's over 28 per cent jump in May this year, makes the biggest gains in a month over the past ten years.

The analysis reveals that every gain alternated with a loss and in May 2008 Sensex gave a negative return of 5.04 per cent. Significantly, the return was 19 per cent in May 1999, which was during the dotcom boom.