Sensex up 150pts; Sterlite, ACC firm

The Sensex is up 155 points at 20,321. Nifty is up 44 points at 6,109.
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(Updated at 1443 hrs)

After paring the gains in noon trades, the markets have once again gained momentum. The Sensex is at 20,359, up 193 points, and Nifty is higher by 54 points at 6120.

Hindalco Industries continues to trade higher and leads the Sensex gainers charts, the stock is trading higher by 4.55% at Rs 221, followed by ACC, Sterlite Industries, Tata Motors, HDFC and TCS. However, Wipro, ITC, Tata Power, Infosys and HDFC Bank are the significant losers on the Sensex.

Among the sectoral indices, Consumer Durables continues to leads the rally, the index is up 1.93% or 122 points at 6,432, followed by Metal, Realty, Auto, Oil & Gas and Bankex indices up more than 0.75% each.

Meanwhile, FMCG index is the only loser on the sectoral charts the index is down 2 points at 3628.

The broader markets are in line with the benchmark indices, the mid-cap index is up 70 points at 8496 and the small-cap index is higher by 107 points or 1.07% at 10,830.

Mahindra & Mahindra Financials has gained nearly 7% at Rs 700, and leads the mid-cap charts, followed by Vardhman Textiles, IRB Infrastructure Developers, KS Oils and Man Infra up more than 5% each.

Among the small-cap stocks Gujarat Ambuja Exports is the top gainer followed by Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilizers, Lloyds Steel and Delta Corp up more than 9% each.

The market breadth continues to be extremely positive; out of 3044 stocks traded on the BSE, 1833 stocks have advanced and 1107 stocks have declined.