The supportive words from the finance minister and central bank (RBI) and the strong movement in Asian and European stock markets keep the market high up in the positive territory this afternoon.

The stocks are trading strongly on the back of continued buying activity seen across sectors including banking, consumer goods, metal, power and realty. 

Indian stock markets belled the day positively, after closing the last week at 10,527.85, down 800.51 points, on Friday (Oct 10). 

Today, the 30-share index, BSE Sensex opened at 10,817.68 after gaining 289.83 points. 

At 1:14p.m., Sensex stood at 11,234.13, up 706.28 points, after hitting a high of 11,267.97 and a low of 10,817.68. 

In contrast, the broad based Nifty gained 203.25 points at 3,483.20 after touching a high of 3,491.20 and a low of 3,272.90. 

The overall breadth of the market was strong as it saw 1,585 advancements as against 906 declinations. 

Most active counters on the bourses were ICICI Bank (19.65%), Reliance Energy (12.95%), Sterlite Industries (India) (12.49%), HDFC Bank (10.11%), Satyam Computer Services (9.83%), and Tata Consultancy Services (9.03%). 

Ranbaxy Laboratories, which shed 1.50% was the only loser in the Sensex.