Markets firm; banking, metal lead

Markets are trading firm in the early deals of Wednesday with the Sensex gaining 495 points to 13,845 levels. The broader markets index Nifty also gained 3.5 per cent to 4128.
Buying is visible in capital goods, realty, IT, oil & gas and banking counters by over 2.8 per cent each.

“I expect two per cent plus opening due to global cues and the Nifty can touch 4100 levels today. Decent recovery can be seen in infrastructure and capital goods stocks,” said VK Doshi, Technical Analyst & Derivative Strategist.

Among the BSE-30 scrips, Reliance Infrastructure gained 6.9 per cent to Rs 807 levels. Other major gainers include Jaiprakash Associates, which is up 6.8 per cent to Rs 168. Reliance Communication also advanced 6 per cent to Rs 440.

Other Asian markets are also trading firm on Wednesday. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, Japan’s Nikkei and South Korea’s Kospi are in green turf by over 1.1 per cent each.

Banks surge

BSE banking index, advanced 278 points or 4.7 per cent, is the biggest gainer among the sectoral indices. ICICI Bank, Axis Bank and Kotak Mahindra are the major gainers of the pack.Metal counters also surged by 3 per cent with Ispat Industries, Jindal Steel & Power and SAIL emerging as prominent gainers