Indian Benchmark indices are trading firm in the opening session with Nifty around 17,400. At 09:15 IST, the Sensex was up 258.53 points or 0.45 per cent at 58255.21, and the Nifty was up 92.10 points or 0.53 per cent at 17414.30. About 1387 shares have advanced, 360 shares declined, and 84 shares are unchanged.
Tata Motors, Wipro, IOC, Hero MotoCorp and Grasim Industries were among major gainers on the Nifty, while losers were HDFC Life, HDFC Bank, HUL, Britannia Industries and Dr Reddy’s Labs.
In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices were also in the positive territory, up 0.5 per cent each. Sectorally, the Nifty Auto index was the leading gainer, up 1 per cent, followed by Nifty Realty, and Oil & Gas were up 0.4 per cent each. Nifty Bank and Pharma slipped into the red as they pared their opening gains, down up to 0.2 per cent.
Global cues are mixed led by a mix of US rate hike bets and easing of Ukraine tension. “US markets ended marginally lower amid release of macroeconomic data. Japan slipped, while other Asian equities were mixed, following a small gain for S&P 500 on Wednesday,” said Mohit Nigam, head – PMS, Hem Securities.
Prashanth Tapse, vice president (research), Mehta Equities Ltd., said on the technical front, “volatility could be the hallmark until investors are certain that Russia will not invade Ukraine. Nifty will face major hurdles at 17807 mark and would gain strength only above 17807 mark. Intraday hurdles at 17417 mark. For the day, support seen at 17208 and then at 17057. Expect waterfall of selling now only below 16811 mark.”
Global Cues
The US markets ended a volatile session of trade on Wednesday with marginal losses as investors heaved a sigh of relief after Fed FOMC release minutes indicated that the Fed intends to raise interest rates, but it would be done at a moderate pace. Thus, allying some fears of back-to-back rate hikes this calendar year. The Dow Jones slipped 0.2 per cent. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were down 0.1 per cent each.
Meanwhile, Oil prices rose as the US and NATO questioned Russia’s willingness to negotiate a solution to the crisis, and accused it of increasing its military build-up surrounding Ukraine. Brent crude surged 1.6 per cent to $94.81 a barrel, and WTI crude jumped 1.7 per cent to $93.66, a barrel.
Major markets in Asia exhibited a mixed trend this morning. Kospi surged 1.2 per cent. Straits Times and Taiwan were up 0.6 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively. On the other hand, Japan’s Nikkei declined 0.4 per cent, and Shanghai Composite was down 0.2 per cent. Hang Seng traded on a flat note.
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