Mumbai, Jul 16 (IANS): Recovery in auto stocks and earning optimism over select stocks drove the markets higher for the second day in a row.

Sensex extended gains after opening a tad higher and ended Tuesday's session 234.33 points higher at 39,131.04 while the broader Nifty closed at 11,661.05, gaining 72.70 points.

Private lender, Yes Bank jumped by 12 per cent on the BSE over reports that the company is set to get capital infusion from a US-based private equity investor, however, the company termed it "speculative".

Most IT companies except for Infosys closed with losses, led by Tata Consultancy Services which declined by 1.67 per cent on the NSE. Mindtree shed 1.18 per cent while Oracle Financial Services Software, Wipro and HCL Tech fell up to 1 per cent.

"A slew of positive vibes from heavy weights ahead of earnings and lower domestic yield supported the market while profit booking on IT stocks & weak rupee limited gains,"said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services .

"Sharp fall in domestic 10 year yield to 6.34 per cent and accommodative stance of RBI provides a hope for further monetary easing," Nair added.