Equity benchmarks extended gains for the fifth consecutive session today as the Sensex is inching towards 29000 supported by banking & financials and select technology stocks.

Equity benchmarks extended gains for the fifth consecutive session today as the Sensex is inching towards 29000 supported by banking & financials and select technology stocks. The index climbed 153.45 points or 0.53 percent to 28938.12 and the Nifty rose 41.60 points to 8737.20. The broader markets gained half a percent too. Two shares advanced for every share declining on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

Gaurav Mehta, Ambit says having found strong support on multiple occasions at the lower end of the all-important channel that has defined Nifty’s upmove over the past twelve months, the uptrend in the index has been reinforced. “We look for upside targets near the 9000 mark over the next few weeks,??? he adds.

Housing finance company HDFC rallied another 3 percent today, in addition to 6 percent gains seen yesterday. Public sector lender State Bank of India jumped over 2 percent while its rivals ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank gained 0.5 percent each.

Larsen & Toubro, Maruti Suzuki, Bharti Airtel and Bajaj Auto advanced 1-1.5 percent whereas Tata Motors and Sesa Sterlite lost 1-2 percent on profit booking. Reliance Industries and ONGC declined half a percent each. ITC erased early gains, falling 0.2 percent ahead of Q3 earnings. A CNBC-TV18 poll expects 12.6 percent growth in profit at Rs 2,686 crore and 11.7 percent growth in revenue at Rs 9,744 crore for the quarter.

Coustery : http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/local-markets/sensex-inches-towards-29000-nifty-firm-hdfcsbi2-3_1279700.html