Sensex up 236pts; REL, Tech stocks rally

The Sensex is now up 236 points at 17,158.

The index opened with a positive gap of 139 points at 17,060, and soon surged to a high of 17,158.

REL has rallied 7.97% to Rs 1,108. Tata Steel has advanced 5.33% to Rs 790.90, while Infosys is up 5.26% to Rs 1,920.20.

ONGC is up nearly 3.35% to Rs 968.05.

ACC, TCS and BHEL are all up more between 2 and 3%.

Hindustan Unilever has slipped nearly 3% to Rs 219.30.

Ambuja Cements and RCom are the other major losers. L&T and RIL are also marginally down.

The NSE Nifty today crossed the 5000-mark for the first time ever. It is now up 62 points at 5002.