The BSE Bankex surged 131.22 points, or 3.19 per cent, to 4,136.98 points, providing a major support to the benchmark BSE Sensex, which gained nearly 200 points at 9,063.61 in early trade.

All the 18 constituents of the sectoral index were trading in positive zone with gains up to 5.06 per cent.

Shares of ICICI Bank traded heavily and shot up by nearly five per cent to Rs 340.50 with nearly 12.63 lakh shares changing hands on the BSE.

State-run State Bank of India gained 2.4 per cent to Rs 973.40 and over 1.43 lakh shares got transacted on the bourse.

Buying in bank stocks gained momentum on the domestic bourses mostly due to worldwide rally in stocks on reports that Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America returned to profitability in January and February, traders said.