Sensex rises 102.09 points, banking, realty stocks rally

Mumbai, April 17 (IANS) A benchmark index for Indian equities markets was trading 102.09 points or 0.60 percent higher around 2.00 p.m. Tuesday after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced cut in interest rates.

The RBI in its annual monetary policy for 2012-13 cut some key rates by 50 basis points in a bid to push industrial growth and stimulate economy -- a move that may also see interest rates falling on housing, automobile and commercial loans.

Announcing the monetary policy for the current fiscal, RBI Governor D. Subbarao said the repurchase rate was being cut by 50 basis points to 8 percent, which will automatically see the reverse repurchase rate also drop to 7 percent from 7.5 percent.

The news buoyed the 30-scrip sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), which opened at 17,200.97 points, and was ruling 17,253.04 points around 2.00 p.m., up 0.60 percent or 102.09 points from its previous close at 17,150.95 points.

The 50-scrip S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange was trading 0.41 percent higher at 5,247.45 points.

There was good buying support in interest rates sensitive banking stocks after the rate cut. The country's largest lender State Bank of India was ruling 1.11 percent or 25.05 points higher at Rs.2,290.45.

The BSE banking index was trading 27.86 points higher at 12,056.47 points. Consumer goods index too came out with healthy performance with a rise of about 75.76 points at 10,085.06. Realty index grew by 23.87 points at 1,805.34 points and Auto index rose by 47.83 points at 10,336.77.

The midcap index of the BSE was up 18.10 points while the smallcap index was ruling 12.56 points higher.

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