Sensex up 144pts; SBI, ITC perk up

The Sensex is now up 144 points at 10,956.

ICICI Bank has rallied nearly 4% to Rs 590. Bharti Airtel has surged 3% to Rs 404.

SBI and ITC have advanced over 2% each to Rs 827 and Rs 172, respectively.

Bajaj Auto, Larsen & Toubro, ONGC and Tata Motors are up around 1.5% each at Rs 2,625, Rs 2,245, Rs 1,179 and Rs 761, respectively.

Out of 2,323 stocks traded so far, 1,457 have advanced, 781 have declined and the rest are unchanged.