Banking stocks catapult Sensex to 14,000 mark

Mumbai, May 16: The Sensex today zoomed up by 197.98 points to cross the psychological barrier of 14,000 and settle in the green on the Bombay Stock Exchange at 14,127.31, buoyed by an impressive surge in banking stocks.

''The BSE Bankex has spurted more than 2 per cent and the Nifty on the National Stock Exchange has moved up by 2.1 per cent.

Therefore, the markets have gone up nothwithstanding a weakness in Asian markets,'' market analysts pointed out.

After opening higher at 13,949.81, the Sensex had touched a high of 14,159.36 and a low of 13,936.88 during intra-day trade.

Among the broader markets, the Nifty Index also shot up by 50.65 points on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and settled in positive territory at 4,170.95 from it's previous close of 4,120.30 points.

It had opened firmer at 4,125.40 and touched a high of 4,181.00 and a low of 4,113.05 during intra-day trade.

The NSE cash turnover was at Rs 10,668.92 crore and the NSE F&O turnover was Rs 32,810.52 crore. The BSE cash turnover was Rs 5,157.33 crore and therefore the total market wide turnover was at Rs 48,636.77 crore, experts observed.

At the premier BSE, shares of State Bank of India rose by 3.85 per cent and those of its associates State Bank of Mysore, State Bank of Bikaner&Jaipur and State Bank of Travancore have made smart progress today.

Private sector bank majors HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank are up by around 2.45 per cent and 1.95 per cent at Rs 1,035 and Rs 904 respectively.

Among other bank stocks, Oriental Bank of Commerce is up by around 4.35 per cent at Rs 216.30. Andhra Bank has moved up by 3.4 pe cent to Rs 91.65. Canara Bank, Union Bank of India, Kotak Bank, Federal Bank, Centurion Bank of Punjab, UTI Bank, Allahabad Bank and Indian Overseas Bank have gained 1 per cent to 2.5 per cent. Bank of India and Bank of Baroda too have posted smart gains.

Dena Bank, which is a part of the public sector unit (PSU) index, is up by around 8.9 per cent at Rs 44.05. UCO Bank has spurted 7.95 per cent to Rs 25.25. Bank of Maharashtra, Indian Bank, IDBI, Vijaya Bank and Indian Overseas Bank have also made impressive progress today, traders disclosed.

Besides the banking sector heavyweights, Reliance Communications, Nalco, Hindalco, BHEL, SAIL, Hindustan Lever and Tata Power are among the top gainers in the BSE Sensitive index.

On the other hand, Hero Honda, BPCL, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, Infosys Technologies, GAIL India, Suzlon Energy, Tata Consultancy Services, Sterlite Industries, Gujarat Ambuja Cements and Maruti Udyog were prominent losers, traders disclosed.

UNI