Markets ended today's session on a flat note. The Sensex provisonaly closed at 18,528, up 64 points and the 50-share Nifty advanced 32 points to 5,610 levels.
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(Updated at 1430 hours)
Markets are trading on a firm note in the late noon deals led by buying visible in the rate sensitive sector stocks post the Reserve Bank of India's credit policy reviw. The Sensex is up 130 points at 18,593 and the 50-share Nifty has advanced 46 points to 5,623 levels.
Meanwhile, the European markets are trading lower as investors took a breather following a sharp two-week rally and a key indices hitting a strong resistance level, although the retreat could be short-lived as recent central bank moves boost risk appetite. The CAC40, DAX and FTSE were down 0.2-0.4% each.
The Asian markets also ended on a mixed note. The Shanghai Composite slipped 2.1% to close at 2,078 while the Hang Seng advanced 0.1% to end at 20,658 levels.
Back home, taking a cautious stance, the Reserve Bank today cut CRR by 0.25% - the percentage of deposits banks keep with central bank - but refrained from reducing lending rates in view of high inflation.
The RBI decision, which comes days after a slew of measures taken by the government to push growth, will release Rs 17,000 crore of primary liquidity into the system.
Jindal Steel is the top gainer among the Sensex stocks, the stock advanced 6.5% to Rs 396. ICICI Bank also advanced 5.5% to Rs 1,062 following the RBI's policy stance. Tata Motors, Larsen & Toubro, BHEL, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, Sterlite Industries, Reliance Industries, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Steel, Tata Power and Mahindra & Mahindra are also trading higher by 2-5% each.
On the other hand, the defensive sectors such as FMCG and healthcare stocks are under pressure and trading lower by over 2% each, on profit taking at higher levels after recent gains, as the reform measures announced by the government will favour cyclical and high beta stocks. ITC, Dr Reddy's Labs, HUL, Sun Pharma and Cipla are among the top losers on the Sensex.
Shares of information technology (IT) companies are under pressure with most of the frontline stocks trading lower by over 2% each after the rupee rallied to 4-month high. The rupee has appreciated almost 3% in past two trading sessions.
The BSE realty index is the top sectoral gainer. The index has surged 6.2% or 102 points to 1,735 levels. Capital goods, bankex, auto and power indices have also advanced 2.4-4% each. At the same time, FMCG, IT, healthcare and teck indices are 1.8-3.4% each.
Among the individual stocks, JSW Steel is trading lower by 3% at Rs 690 in otherwise firm market on report that the inter-ministerial group (IMG) recommended the cancellation of mining license of a coal block held by the company.
Deccan Chronicle Holdings has locked at lower circuit of 5% to Rs 10.36 ahead of the Bombay High Court (HC) verdict on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decision to terminate the contract of IPL team Deccan Chargers.
The broader markets are also trading higher. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices are up 1% each.
The overall breadth is positive as 1,540 stocks are advancing while 1,254 are declining.
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