Gains intact, Sensex up 280pts

Backed by aggressive buying across sectors the markets continued to trade firm in noon trades. The BSE Sensex has gained 278 points at 18,714, and the S&P CNX Nifty is at 5,619, up 78 points.

The positive vibes from overseas markets following reports of Greece's bailout, have lifted market sentiment. As per reports, Greece will get a new aid package worth 109 billion euros ($157 billion). Further, the European Union leaders will amplify the role of the European Financial Stability Facility to allow it to lend to governments and to intervene in the secondary market to avoid contagion.

The US markets climbed overnight as signs of progress on the US debt talks and concrete action from Europe on its own debt crisis heartened investors. Among the major indices in the Asian markets, the Shanghai Composite index is up 0.1% at 2,768, the Hang Seng is at 22,356, up 1.7% and the Nikkei is at 10,132, having gained 1.2%.

The top gainers on the Sensex - Infosys has rallied nearly 2% to Rs 2,819. Bharti Airtel, Tata Power, Tata Motors and HDFC are also up around up 2% each. on the other hand, DLF is the only loser on Sensex, down 0.6% at Rs 240.

Among the sectoral indices, all the sectors are in the positive except for the BSE Consumer Durables (CD) sector. The BSE TECk is trading the highest at 3,617, up 1.5% and is closely followed by BSE IT and BSE Oil&Gas, up 1.4% each. GTL Infrastructure, Tata Teleservices, Mphasis, Bharti Airtel and Tulip Telecom are few of the top gainers among the BSE Tech pack.

The BSE CD index is down 0.7% at 6,765 and the top losers include Whirlpool Industries, Titan Industries and Gitanjali Gems.

The broader markets witnessed strong trades too with the mid-cap index at 7,032, up 1% and the small-cap index at 8,45, up 0.8%

Punj Lloyd hardened on the bourses after bagging a civil contract worth Rs 210 crore for a thermal power project from NTPC for its power plant in Assam. The shares opened at Rs 74 and touched a low of Rs 73 and a high of Rs 75, till ealry noon.

The overall market breadth is refreshingly positive as 1,660 stocks advanced as against 920 stocks that declined out of a total of 2,689 stocks on the BSE.