BSE Sensex edges higher; bank stocks lead

Reuters Market Eye - The BSE Sensex gains 0.3 percent, while the Nifty is up 0.34 percent. Banks gain on optimism ahead of the RBI's policy review on January 28 when the central bank is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged after inflation cooled last month.

ICICI Bank is up 1.3 percent, while HDFC Bank gains 1 percent. The Bank Nifty are heading towards their second weekly gain of nearly 2 percent after rising 1 percent in the previous week.

Hindustan Zinc gains 3.4 percent after TV channels reported that the government had approved on Monday a stake-sale in the company, citing unnamed sources.

 

However, Asian Paints falls 3 percent after the company's net profit for the October-December quarter fell 1.75 percent.

(Reporting by Abhishek Vishnoi)