BSE Sensex jumps nearly 200 points; L&T, ICICI lead

Stock brokers engage in trading at a brokerage firm in Mumbai February 14, 2008.

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The BSE Sensex rose on Friday, posting its biggest weekly gain in three weeks, helped by select buying in recent under performers such as ITC and L&T as the global risk environment improved on the back of better-than-expected U.S. economic data.

Asian shares rose on the back of improvements in the U.S. private sector employment and consumer confidence, although global shares steadied later in the session ahead of U.S. October jobs data.

At home, earnings continued to remain a factor, with Jet Airways(JET.NS) gaining after it posted better-than-expected results, while Apollo Tyre fell after operating margins disappointed.

The gains on Friday helped domestic shares overcome a week marked by disappointment after the Reserve Bank of India left interest rates unchanged on Monday and signalled no monetary easing until 2013.

"If we see some good results, then maybe we can see some rally, but more importantly the easy part to revive the sentiment is done by Finance Minister, but actions are required now," said Sandeep J Shah, CEO, Sampriti Capital.

"But the upside is capped at 5,800-6,000 beyond which valuation would not look attractive," he added.

The BSE index rose 1.04 percent or 193.75 points to end at 18,755.45 points. For the week, the index closed up 0.7 percent, to post its biggest gain since the week ended on Oct 6.

The 50-share Nifty rose 0.93 percent or 52.65 points to 5,697.70 points, adding 0.6 percent in the week, the biggest since the week ended on Oct 6.

Cigarette maker ITC rose 1.4 percent after falling 2.3 percent this week as of Thursday close, while Larsen & Toubro rose 2.7 percent after falling 4.6 percent during the same period.

Banks also recovered after the RBI increased banks' provisioning against restructured assets.

Another index underperformer ICICI Bank gained 2.11 percent, while the State Bank of India rose 1.75 percent.

Among other gainers, Union Bank of India rose 8.1 percent after the state-run bank reported on Friday an improvement in its asset quality in the July-September quarter.

Wipro Ltd (WIPR.NS), India's No. 3 software services provider, gained 0.93 percent after reporting a 24 percent rise in September quarter net profit at 16.11 billion rupees beating estimates and forecast modest growth.

Bajaj Auto shares gained 2.8 percent on Friday after recording a 4 percent rise in sales in October, marking its second highest vehicle sales ever in the month of October.

Jet Airways (JET.NS) rose 3.05 percent after beating estimates with a 86 percent cut in its second-quarter losses thanks to a jump in operating income, sending its shares as much as 5.5 percent higher.

However, Apollo Tyres shares fell 2.43 percent, after its quarterly operating margins fell short of market expectations.

Personal care products maker Marico Ltd (MRCO.NS) fell 4.24 percent after it reported a lower-than-expected 10 percent growth in the quarter ended September.