Building on early gains, the Sensex at the Bombay Stock Exchange stood 220 points, or 1.2 per cent in the green, at 18,782 in afternoon deals, a short while ago. Earlier in the morning, the Sensex had opened a good 161 points, or 0.9 per cent in positive territory, at 18,722, on sustained buying by funds and retail investors, amid positive Asian boursesStock markets in Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore had gained between 0.4 percent and 1.3 percent, today, after the latest data suggested some stabilization in the world's top biggest economies, the United States and China. Across on Wall Street, the US Dow Jones Industrial Average had ended 1 per cent higher on Thursday.