Sensex ends up 118pts

The Sensex finally ended (provisional) with a gain of 118 points at 18,095. The NSE Nifty was up 38 points at 5,437.
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(Updated at 1440 hrs)

The markets have firmed up in late-noon trades on the back of a reversal in the global bourses. The benchmark indices have comfortably surmounted the hitherto elusive psychological levels of 18k and 5400, with the Sensex now quoting at 18069, higher by 98 points, and the Nifty placed at 5429, up 30 points.  The midcap index is up 19 points at 7446 and the samllcap index is up 23 points at 9488.

The Dow futures have rallied nearly 100 points and the European markets, which were stagnating since opening bell, have suddenly come to life and gained anywhere between 1% and 2% each. Results of stress tests on 91 European banks are due on July 23 .

M&M has strengthened by 2.1% at Rs 630 tto emerge as the leading gainer on the BSE. Jindal Steel has gained 1.7% at Rs 646, JP Associates has added 1.6% at Rs 130 and Tata Steel has hardened by 1.4% at Rs 537.

On the other hand, ACC has weakened by 1.1% at Rs 815, Maruti has shed 0.7% at Rs 1353 and ICICI Bank has lost 0.6% at Rs 897.