Nifty hits 8,600 for the first time since November 01; Sensex up 350 points

The benchmark indices on Wednesday extended gains as banking stocks continued to rally on the back of robust quarterly results, while sentiment was aided by higher rollovers to February series. 

The S&P BSE Sensex rose over 300 points to trade above 27,500, while the broader Nifty50 reclaimed its crucial 8,600-mark.

At 03:06 pm, the Sensex was trading at 27,699, up 324 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 8,599, up 123 points. 

Broader market mirroed the gains in headline indices with BSE Midcap and BSE Smallcap rising 0.6% and 0.7%, respectively.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of