Sensex opens over 130 points higher

Market opened higher tracking robust global cues amid strong foreign fund inflows. The 30-share Sensex opened 133 points higher at 22,582 levels while 50-unit Nifty was up 28 points at 6,749 levels.

Asian share markets added to their recent rally on Wednesday as investors chose to accentuate the positive in a mixed bag of global economic data, pressuring the safe haven yen to a 10-week trough. Even sluggishness in China is now considered favourably since it adds to the case for stimulus, and there are signs Beijing is hastening infrastructure spending in response.

Trading was cautious, however, ahead of Thursday's meeting of the European Central Bank and Friday's US jobs numbers, both of which could move markets in major ways.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan crept up 0.3 percent to a fresh four-month high, while Australia's market added 0.2 percent.

The Nikkei outperformed thanks to the drop in the yen and climbed 1.3 percent.

On Wall Street, the S&P 500 ended Tuesday up 0.70 percent and just off a record intraday high. The Dow rose 0.46 percent, while the Nasdaq bounced 1.64 percent.

The U.S. economic news was generally supportive of risk appetite. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its index of national factory activity rose to 53.7 in March, its second straight monthly acceleration. However, the report was below the median forecast of 54.0

Stocks to watch

Investors might want to pick banking stocks at lower levels after yesterday's dip. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan on Tuesday kept key rates unchanged. Since taking the helm at the central bank last year, Rajan has repeatedly surprised the markets by holding the repo lending rate steady when everybody has expected a hike and going for a hike when all have thought no change is on the cards.

Banking licence aspirant stocks such as  L&T Finance , IDFC, LIC Housing Finance , Shriram Transport Finance , Bajaj Finance will be focus today after the Election Commission (EC) on Tuesday allowed the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to issue new bank licences. In a letter to the RBI governor, the EC said the central bank might take "necessary action as deemed appropriate as permissible under provisions of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, and/or any other relevant law(s)."