Markets continue to trade on a flat note in the noon deals on the back of selling pressure visible in the technology stocks post the Infosys's fourth quarter results. The Sensex is up 19 points at 17,351 and the Nifty has advanced 10 points to 5,287 levels.
The Asian markets are trading on a strong note. The Nikkei has advanced 113 points to 9,638, Hang Seng has jumped 338 points to 20,665 and the Shanghai was up 9 points at 2,359 levels.
Back home, rate sensitive sector stocks are trading higher in trades today on hopes that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will cut the key rates in the upcoming monetary policy review. Auto, banking and realty indices have jumped 1.4-2% each. The BSE Auto index has jumped over 2% or 211 points to 10,321 levels. Apollo Tyres, Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki, Exide Industries and Bajaj Auto are among the top gainers from this space.
Healthcare, oil & gas, capital goods, power, metal, PSU, FMCG and consumer durable stocks are also trading higher in trades so far.
On the other hand, post the dismal fourth quarter result announcement by the heavyweight Infosys, the IT stocks are facing intense selling pressure. The BSE IT index has shed 6.5% or 384 points to 5,539 levels. Teck index is also down 5% at 3,306 levels. Infosys is the top loser from this pack, down 9% at Rs 2,500 levels. The company has posted increase of 2.4% q-o-q at rs 2,316 crore. In the previous quarter its net profit was Rs 2,372 crore. TCS and Wipro have also shed 4-5% each.
Among the Sensex stocks, Stwerlite Industries, Sun Pharma, State bank of India, reliance Industries, Coal India, Larsen & Toubro, Tata Steel, DLF, Gail India, NTPC, ICICI Bank, Bharti Airtel and Tata power are among the top gainers.
The broader markets are outperforming the benchmark indices. The BSE mid-cap index is up 1% or 59 points at 6,443 and the small-cap index has advanced 56 points to 6,897 levels.
The overall breadth is positive as 1,623 stocks are advancing while 910 are declining.
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