Sensex pares gains, up 95 points in late morning deals

The BSE Sensex pared initial gains to trade 95.49 points higher in late morning deals, led by buying in banking, energy, realty and healthcare sectors amid higher Asian cues.

ICICI Bank surged nearly 7 per cent despite a slump in Q4 net profit due to a sharp rise in provisions for bad loans.

The 30-share index was trading higher at 35,303.63 at 1045 hrs, showing a gain of 95.49 points, or 0.27 per cent.

The broader Nifty-50 index was trading up by 23.50 points, or 0.22 per cent at 10,739.00.

Major gainers included TCS 1.25 per cent, Axis Bank 0.83 per cent, ITC 0.82 per cent and Coal India 0.80 per cent.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 635.24 crore on a net basis, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought equities to the tune of Rs 1,037.23 crore yesterday, provisional data showed.

Overseas, Asian markets were trading higher following firm leads from Wall Street.

US stock market settled higher yesterday, but well off the peak of the day, as energy shares pulled back on uncertainty over whether the US would decertify a 2015 Iran nuclear pact.