Nifty reclaims 8800, Sensex up 100 pts; RBL Bank shares soar 25%

Moneycontrol Bureau10:55 am Market steady: Equity benchmarks remained higher with the Sensex rising 100.57 points to 28443.58 and the Nifty up 41.45 points at 8785.80.About 1241 shares advanced against 847 declining shares on the BSE.10:45 am Oil Update: Oil prices extended losses in Asia on the back of a strong dollar while reported comments by Iran's oil minister that his country planned to boost output ramped up oversupply worries.

The comments by Bijan Zangeneh, carried by Iran's official news agency on Tuesday, added to a feeling that an informal OPEC meeting with Russia in September may not result in a deal that would boost prices.

Zangeneh said Iran needed to raise its output to regain the market share lost while it was under international sanctions, which were lifted only in January.

Iran has struggled to raise production above four million barrels per day since the the sanctions were removed, according to the report, which said it is currently producing 3.8 million.

10:30 am Buzzing: Kotak Mahindra Bank shares surged to record high of Rs 807, up 2.7 percent intraday after the Canada Pension Plan is allowed to increase stake in the country's third largest private sector lender (by market capitalisation).

"The Reserve Bank of India on Tuesday said it has granted approval to Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) for acquiring shares in excess of 5 percent and below 10 percent of the paid up capital of Kotak Mahindra Bank.10:15 am Q1 GDP Poll: The country's gross domestic product (GDP) growth is expected to see a slowdown in the first (April-June) quarter of fiscal year 2017, a CNBC-TV18 poll of economists suggests, as the impact of a high base and higher deflator plays out.Compared with that, GDP in last (January-March) quarter of fiscal 2016 showed GDP had come in at 7.9 percent.For the first quarter, gross value added (GVA), too, is seen slowing from 7.4 percent to 7.3 percent. The data is expected today.Also read - If India grows at 10%, HDFC Bank will grow at 30%: MD10:00 am Market Check

Equity benchmarks extended rally for the fourth consecutive session with the Nifty reclaiming 8800 level for the first time since April 15, 2015.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 102.10 points at 28445.11 and the 50-share NSE Nifty rose 44.65 points to 8789. About 1204 shares advanced against 566 declining shares on the BSE.Shares of RBL Bank debuted on the exchanges at Rs 274.20 per share, up 22 percent from its issue price of Rs 225. It surged to Rs 282.40 in early trade. The first private lender IPO in a decade was opened for subscription between August 19-23.