MUMBAI: The BSE benchmark Sensex surged by 184 points to regain the magical 20,000 points level on Friday as foreign funds continued to pump capital into domestic equities, bolstered by the government’s move to relax certain foreign investment limits.

The Sensex shot up by 184.17 points to 20,045.18 points, its highest level since January, 2008, led by the realty and FMCG sectors.
The government has raised the FII cap in bonds floated by companies engaged in the infrastructure business, which will provide much-needed funds for the crucial sector.
The Indian economy expanded by 8.8 per cent in the first quarter of the current fiscal compared to the corresponding period a year ago, the most among major economies after China and Brazil.
In a similar fashion, the broad-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty rose by 58.75 points to 6,018.30 points. During the session, it touched an intra-day high of 6,029.10 points.
The realty sector index gained the most, rising by 2.78 per cent to 3,695.99 as DLF Ltd, the biggest real estate developer, advanced by ` 18 to ` 365.65.
The fast moving consumer goods sector was the second-best performer, adding 1.79 per cent to 3,752.17 as Hindustan Unilever, the local unit of the world’s second-largest consumer goods maker, climbed for the seventh day by ` 11.90 to ` 314.65.
The trading sentiment remained intact despite a mixed trend in the Asian region and a lower opening in Europe.
Reliance Industries, the most valuable scrip on the Sensex, rose by Rs 3.95 to Rs 1,001.65, while the firm with the second-most weightage, Infosys Technologies, jumped by Rs 26.40 to Rs 3,040.65. The two carry nearly 23 per cent weightage on the index.
With buying activity spilled over a wide-front, the small-cap sector index rose by 1.05 per cent to 10,267.33 points and the mid-cap index by 1.04 per cent to 8,115.16 points.