Sensex up 244pts; Grasim slips 2%

The Sensex is now up 244 points at 18,050.

The NSE Nifty is up 66 points at 5,336.

Mahindra & Mahindra has zoomed 5.4% to Rs 664. Larsen & Toubro has soared 4% to Rs 3,661.

BHEL, Ranbaxy and HDFC have surged around 3.5% each to Rs 2,260, Rs 434 and Rs 2,660, respectively.

Hindalco and ICICI Bank have rallied 2.3% each to Rs 202 and Rs 1,143, respectively.

Tata Steel and ONGC have gained around 2% each at Rs 826 and Rs 1,047, respectively. Hindustan Unilever has added 1.6% to Rs 223.

Grasim has shed 1.7% at Rs 2,990. Bajaj Auto and Infosys have slipped 1.5% each to Rs 2,173 and Rs 1,637, respectively.

Ambuja Cements is down 1% at Rs 122.

The market breadth is fairly positive - out of 2,678 stocks traded so far, 1,778 have advanced, 817 have declined and 83 are unchagned.