The market opened on a firm note this morning and kept moving higher and higher as the session progressed with the bulls, presumably FIIs, staying aggressive right till the end of the day.

Though Asian markets ended on a mixed note, a firm trend on the European bourses and a decline in food inflation kept the mood upbeat today. The market shrugged off concerns about a possible decline in earnings of India Inc in the April - June 2011 quarter, and the ongoing investigation in the 2G scam that has resulted in the Union Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran submitting his resignation from the cabinet.

The Sensex, which opened with a positive gap of around 50 points at 18,776.62, sped past the psychological 19,000 mark in late afternoon trade and ended at 19,078.30 with a handsome gain of 351.33 points or 1.88%. The benchmark hit a high of 19,097.78.

The Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange, which vaulted to 5737.15, settled at 5728.95, recording a gain of 103.50 points or 1.84%.