Sensex up 76 points in early trade

The 30-share barometer, which had gained 82.27 points in Friday's trade, surged 76.53 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 16,229.28 led by banking, realty and consumer durables stocks.

The wide-based National Stock Exchange index Nifty, moved up by 26.90 points, or 0.55 per cent, to 4,918.35.

Brokers attributed the rise to increased buying by funds and retail investors, along with covering-up of short positions by speculators triggered by strong earnings by state-run State Bank of India and Reliance Capital.

Stocks of State Bank of India rose 2.92 per cent to Rs 1,998.80, while Reliance Capital gained 6.57 per cent to Rs 310.

In the Asian region, Japan's Nikkei was up by 0.08 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng index shed 0.32 per cent in early trade. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.59 per cent lower in the previous trading session.