BSE Sensex opens higher at 14,107.09 pts

Mumbai, Feb 15: The Sensex today opened firm at 14,107.09 against 14,009.90 on the previous day's close in the Bombay Stock Exhange(BSE) on fresh speculative demand from Foreign Institutional Investors(FIIs) and mutual funds in view of firm global advice.

A firm trend in Indian ADRs and upbeat Asian markets have triggered a solid surge on the bourses this morning.

Later, the Sensex was up 260 points, at 14,270. It had also hit a high of 14,312.87 during mid-morning session.

Banking, auto, cement and IT stocks had edged higher. The market-breadth was strong.

Tata Motors, surged nearly 4 per cent to Rs 883.90, is poised to strengthen its presence in Latin America through a partnership with Italian carmaker Fiat, adding to its portfolio of global markets that includes Europe, Africa and south-east Asia.

Car major Maruti Udyog gained 2.2 per cent to Rs 876.50.

Engineering&construction major L&T surged nearly 4 per cent to Rs 1675 and PSU power equipment major Bhel rose 2 per cent to Rs 2372.

Bharti Airtel 3 per cent to Rs 783.90, even as it cut roaming charges.

ICICI Bank gained 3 per cent to Rs 943 after its ADR rose 3.2 per cent on Wednesday to USD 43.61. HDFC Bank rose 2.5 per cent to Rs 1043. Its ADR gained 0.8 per cent on Wednesday to USD71.83.

Cement shares rose for the second day in a row. Gujarat Ambuja Cements gained 3 per cent to Rs 135, Grasim rose 1.7 per cent to Rs 2702 and ACC gained 1.1 per cent to Rs 1033.50.

Index heavyweight Reliance Industries (RIL) rose 1.4 per cent to Rs 1396. Redington (India) was trading at Rs 135. The stock debuted at Rs 140 compared to the IPO price of Rs 113.

Asian shares were firm on Thursday. Key benchmark indices in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Singapore were up between 0.5 - 1.69 per cent.

US stocks and bonds surged on Wednesday, with the Dow climbing to an intra-day record, after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the economy was growing and inflation pressures were starting to ease.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 87.01 points, or 0.69 per cent, to end at 12,741.86. The Standard&Poor's 500 Index gained 11.04 points, or 0.76 per cent, to finish at 1,455.30. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 28.50 points, or 1.16 per cent, to close at 2,488.38, off the session's high at 2,494.51, brokers added.

UNI