The Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange rallied 249 points, or 1.5 per cent, to 16,665 in opening trade, this morning, on continued buying by investors, amid rising regional markets. The Sensex later pared its gains somewhat, but was still a good 179 points or 1.1 percent in positive territory, at 16,596 in afternoon deals, a short while ago. The 30-share Sensex had surged a mammoth 568 points in Monday's trade. Stock markets in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, and Taiwan were up by between 0.8 percent and 1.1 percent, today. Over in the US, the key Dow Jones Industrial Average had spurted 2.3 per cent, overnight, after better-than-estimated consumer spending data bolstered investor sentiment.