Sensex jumps by 216 points; Nifty crosses 8,300 level

The benchmark BSE Sensex rose by over 216 points in early trade on Friday on buying in banking, IT and oil stocks by funds and retail investors amid a mixed trend in Asian markets.

The 30-share index rose by 216.11 points, or 0.79%, to 27,723.65 points with all the sectoral indices led by power, PSU and banking trading in positive zone with gains up to 1.10%. The barometer had gained 298.93 points in the previous five sessions.

The wide-based Nifty of the National Stock Exchange regained the crucial 8,300-mark by surging over 60.55 points, or 0.73% to 8,344.55. Brokers said continued buying by funds as well as retail investors, following push up in economic reforms by the government influenced the trading sentiment. Major gainers which supported the benchmark were HDFC (1.79%), ONGC (1.63%), BHEL (1.60%), ICICI Bank (1.49%), NTPC (1.26%), Axis Bank (1.16%) and Infosys (0.72%). Gains of up to 1.5% in Reliance, Tata Motors, HDFC Bank and ITC also supported the Sensex rise. Among Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng rose by 0.78%, while Japan's Nikkei fell 1.57% in early trade pn Friday.