By IANS,
Mumbai : A benchmark index for Indian equities markets Friday was ruling 205 points higher around noon, breaking a nine-day losing spree and shaking off post- rate hike jitters.
The 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) which opened at 18,289.78 points was ruling at 18,420.08 points, up 209.5 points or 1.15 percent from its previous close at 18,210.58 points.
The 50-scrip S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange was also trading in the green at 5,518.45 points, up 1.02 percent.
Broader markets too rose, with the BSE midcap index up 0.53 percent and the BSE small cap index up 0.7 percent.
Banking stocks, which were battered after the Reserve Bank of India hiked key interest rates and the rate of interest on savings bank accounts, were among the top gainers Friday noon. Auto and capital goods stocks too were on the rise.
The market breadth was positive with 1,536 stocks advancing, 900 on the decline and 84 remaining unchanged.
Among gainers on the Sensex were ICICI Bank, Tata Motors, M&M and DLF, while the losers included Reliance Infra, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications and Sterlite.
Asian markets were trading weak as investors dumped commodity stocks, following a slump in prices of metals and amid concerns that the recovery in US may not be as robust as it seemed.
The Japanese stock exchange closed 1.38 percent lower at 9,865.22 points.
The Chinese Shanghai composite index was ruling flat at 2,871.8 points, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was ruling 0.26 percent lower at 23,201.93 points.