Rate sensitive stocks like banking and realty posted impressive gains on the Bombay Stock Exchange today after the Reserve Bank kept the policy rates unchanged.
Led by gains in State Bank of India, HDFC and ICICI Bank, the BSE banking index surged by 236.23 points, or 1.86 per cent, to settle at 12,958.88 points.
Country's largest lender SBI surged by 2.44 per cent to Rs 2,761.85, while biggest private lender ICICI Bank rose by 2.44 per cent. Another banking major HDFC Bank climbed 1.80 per cent on BSE.
The BSE realty index rose by 26.97 points, or 0.98 per cent, to end at 2,771.70.
Realty giant DLF went up 1.56 per cent, while Unitech rose by 1.21 per cent.
RBI in its mid-quarter review of monetary policy kept short-term lending and borrowing rates unchanged at 6.25 per cent and 5.25 per cent, respectively. It also maintained the mandatory cash reverse ratio at 6 per cent.
Marketmen said the move will help inject liquidity in to the system which is facing huge cash crunch and in return help the corporate sector at large.
"Keeping the rates unchanged is maintenance of the status-quo. On its implications on the broader market I think business will be as usual on the street," Unicon Financial CEO Gajendra Nagpal said.
Fag-end buying in financial stocks pushed the benchmark index Sensex up by 217 points at 19,864.85 points.
In the auto pack, Hero Honda was the top gainer, while Mahindra & Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki and Bajaj Auto slipped into the red.
Hero Honda soared 3.57 per cent to close at Rs 1,679.10 amid media reports of split in the joint venture between Hero Group and Japan's Honda.
Mahindra & Mahindra lost 2.73 per cent, Maruti went down by 1.23 per cent and Bajaj Auto fell 0.95 per cent.
The BSE auto index finished flat at 9,890.72 points.