 "Market rangebound; Sensex slips below 21,000")
At 10.35 am, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading at 20,991up 34 points from yesterday's close while the 50-share Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) is at 6254 up 14 points.
Broader markets are outperforming the benchmarks today with both BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices trading higher by 0.2% - 0.4%.
Continuing its rising streak for the third straight day, the rupee today appreciated by 13 paise to 61.62 against the dollar in early trade at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market on sustained selling of the US currency by exporters and banks.
The rupee had gained 30 paise to close at one-month high of 61.75 in the previous session.
ITC, ONGC, TCS, Tata Motors and Hero Motocorp are the top Sensex gainers at this hour while ICICI Bank, Airtel, Infosys, Wipro and Tata motors are the top losers.
Auto, Consumer durables, Power, Oil & gas and capital goods are the gainers on the BSE sectoral indices while bankex, TECk and IT indices are the laggards at this hour.
Update at 1030 hours
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After a flat start key indices edged higher in early trades led by buying in heavyweights.
Market surged over 1% yesterday after exit polls conducted in the assembly elections indicated that Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) could win 3 out of 5 states which are set to declare poll results on December 8.
At 9.36am, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading at 21030 up 74 points from yesterday's close while the 50-share Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) is at 6254 up 14 points.
Broader markets are outperforming the benchmarks today with both BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices trading higher by 0.30% - 0.35%.
ITC, ONGC, TCS, L&T and HUL are the top Sensex gainers at this hour while ICICI Bank, Airtel, Infosys, Wipro and Tata motors are the top losers.
Power, Oil & gas, capital goods, consumer durables and autos are the gainers on the BSE sectoral indices while bankex is the sole laggard at this hour.
The US government revised its initial estimates on third-quarter economic growth to 3.6% from earlier 2.8%. This has renewed fears that the Fed may decide to taper its stimulus. Investors are eyeing November's jobs report from US on Friday now. European markets fell after the European Central Bank and the Bank of England both kept interest rates steady.
Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta President Dennis Lockhart, a backer of record stimulus, said any decision to taper bond purchases should be accompanied by a limit on the size of the programme or a timetable for ending it.
"If and when the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) arrives at a decision to wind down asset purchases, it's my view that it will be helpful to the transition process to provide as much certainty as possible about how this will be done," said Lockhart in a speech in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He doesn't vote on policy this year.
The FOMC will consider scaling back $85 billion in monthly bond buying in coming months based on expected gains in the labour market, according to minutes from the committee's October meeting. The panel is scheduled to meet December 17-18.
Asian markets steadied on Friday as Japanese shares recouped early losses, though investors were pensive ahead of jobs data that could make or break the case for an imminent scaling back in US stimulus. Defying a soft finish on Wall Street, Tokyo's Nikkei edged up 0.2% in morning trading, recouping a little of the 3.6% loss suffered in the previous two sessions.
Shares across the region seemed to take some heart and MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan turned flat after an early dip.
Overnight, U.S. stocks fell on Thursday, with the Dow and S&P 500 dropping for a fifth straight session after a round of mixed economic data left traders guessing as to when the Federal Reserve would begin to slow its stimulus program.
The Dow and the S&P 500 are in their worst stretch since September. However, the moves have been slight, with the S&P 500 down about 1.2% over the period.
The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 0.43%, to end at 15,821. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 0.43%, to finish at 1,785. The Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 0.12%, to close at 4,033.