Sensex gains 300 points; Bank Nifty up 2%

Sensex gains 300 points; Bank Nifty up 2%

Markets extended gains in morning trades with buying visible across all the sectors in today's trade. At 1030hrs, the Sensex was up 297 points at 25,396 and the Nifty advanced 87 points to trade at 7,595.

29 of 30 stocks are in green on the Sensex with TCS being the only exception, marginally down 0.06%

Shares of oil and gas companies are trading higher by up to 3% as Brent crude prices steadied near US $113/barrel. BPCL, HPCL, IOC and ONGC were up 2-3%.

The rupee is trading at 60.02/03 versus its Friday's close of 60.0850/0950, as the dollar makes losses versus most other Asian currencies.

The rupee is seen holding in a 59.80 to 60.30 range during the session. Demand for the greenback from oil refiners looking to meet month-end demand is expected to limit any sharp downward pressure on the USD/INR pair.