Sensex holds gains, stays above 17,000 mark; ICICI Bank up 3%

Thanks to sustained buying in several blue chip stocks from banking, information technology, oil and realty sectors, the market, which opened on an upbeat note this morning, remains well entrenched in positive territory now with most of its gains intact.

FMCG and automobile stocks are also trading firm, while metal, capital goods and healthcare stocks are drifting lower due to lack of support at higher levels.

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The Sensex is up 184 points or 1.1% at 17,047.30, off the day's high of 17,081.54. At 5145.15, the Nifty is up 57.85 points or 1.14% over its previous closing mark.

ICICI Bank, the top gainer in the Sensex at present, is up nearly 3% at Rs 876.50. HDFC Bank is trading 1.3% up at Rs 485 and State Bank of India is up with a gain of 2.6% at Rs 2041. State Bank of India has informed that the Government of India, vide its letter dated January 30, 2012, has conveyed its approval under section 5(2) of the State Bank of India Act to increase the issued capital by State Bank of India by way of preferential allotment of equity shares to GoI to the extent of approximately Rs. 7,900 crore (including premium).

Bajaj Auto is trading stronger by 2.8% at Rs 1588. Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Reliance Industries, Jindal Steel, ITC, ONGC, Tata Power and HDFC are up 1% - 2%. HDFC, Mahindra & Mahindra, Wipro, BHEL, Bharti Airtel, Hero Motocorp, GAIL India and Sun Pharmaceuticals are also trading firm.

Tata Steel is trading lower by 1.8% at Rs 435. Larsen & Toubro is down with a loss of 1.6%, while Maruti Suzuki, Coal India and NTPC are down 1% - 1.5%. Sterlite Industries and Hindustan Unilever are also trading weak.

Tata Global Beverages, up 5% at Rs 102.80, is the top gainer among BSE 'A' Group stocks. The stock is up following an announcement from the company that it has formed a joint venture with Starbucks to open Starbucks Cafes across India. As part of the agreement signed today, the two companies will form an equal JV, Tata Starbucks Ltd. The venture will have a separate management team and a board of six members, with equal representation from both partners.

Havells India has notched up a gain of 4.5%. Bajaj Holdings, IDFC, Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, Adani Enterprises, Mphasis, Tech Mahindra, Voltas, Allahabad Bank, Yes Bank, Educomp Solutions, Adani Ports, Hindustan Zinc and Indian Overseas Bank are also up with strong gains.

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Suzlon Energy is up 2.5% at Rs 27 following the company signing a contract for a 100 MW wind power project with CLP, India. The project comprises 48 units of Suzlon's latest S97-2.1 MW wind turbines, featuring DFIG technology. The project will be set up in the state of Rajasthan and is scheduled to be commissioned by January 2013. The deal is valued at over Rs 600 crore.

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals is down over 6% at Rs 292.50 on weak results. The company announced that its quarterly consolidated net profit almost halved at Rs 46.12 crore for the quarter ended December, on heavy foreign exchange losses from overseas borrowings despite robust sales growth. The company, which sells generic drugs and develops new molecules, had registered a net profit of Rs 86.54 crore a year earlier. However, net sales during the quarter jumped 38% to Rs 1,031 crore on year-on-year basis.