Upmove continues... Sensex gains 300pts

Mirroring positive cues from the global markets, the Sensex opened with a positive gap of 137 points at 8,481. The index, since then, has displayed strength and is now up 300 points at 8,644.

Realty and banking stocks continue to lead the upmove. The BSE Realty index has surged 6% to 1,388, and the Bankex has gained 5% at 3,941. The BSE Metal and IT indexes have also rallied 4% each to 4,754 and 2,155, respectively.

DLF and ICICI Bank have zoomed nearly 8% each to Rs 148 and Rs 306, respectively.

Tata Power and Sterlite have surged 6% each to Rs 643 and Rs 278, respectively.

HDFC and Mahindra & Mahindra have rallied nearly 6% each to Rs 1,358 and Rs 348, respectively.

Tata Steel and Reliance Infrastructure have gained over 5% each to Rs 164 and Rs 464, respectively.

NTPC, however, has slipped over 1% to Rs 172.

The market breadth is fairly positive - out of 2,176 stocks traded so far, 1,356 have advanced, 735 have declined and the rest are unchanged.