Markets remain strong

Markets continued to trade on a strong note in the noon deals. The Sensex has surged 460 points to 16,582 and the Nifty has added 130 points to 4,964 levels.

Earlier in the day, the markets witnessed a gap up opening on back of strong global cues and the Sensex touched the high of 16,718.

On the macro-economic front the government released the inflation data for the week ended November 19. Inflation eased to 8% compared to 9.01% during the previous week.

Metal stocks are among the top gainers on the Sensex. Sterlite Industries is the top gainer on the Sensex, up 7.6% to Rs 107. Hindalco, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, ICICI Bank, DLF, J P Associates, Jindal Steel, Reliance Industries,  J P Associates and HDFC Bank are also trading higher by 3.3-7% each.

On the other hand, Bharti Airtel and HUL are among the losers.

Among the individual stocks, Steel Strips Wheels has rallied nearly 13% to Rs 194 in trades today after the company reported encouraging November sales.

Valecha Engineering has zoomed 17% to Rs 67.20 after the company said that it will begin commercial operation for its first built-operate-transfer (BOT) road toll project eleven months before schedule..

Ranbaxy Laboratories has rallied over 10% to Rs 480 after the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) granted approval to produce generic version of cholesterol lowering drug Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium tablets).

All the sectoral indices are trading higher. BSE Metal index is the top gainer, the index has surged nearly 5% or 487 points at 10,712. Bankex has advanced 4% to 10,242. Realty, auto, consumer durables, capital goods, power, oil & Gas, IT and PSU stocks are also witnessing buying and these indices have jumped 1.8-3.4% each.

ICICI Bank is the top gainer among the banking stocks. It is followed by Indusind Bank, Bank of Baroda, Yes Bank, Axis Bank, Union Bank, Federal Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

The broader markets are also trading firm, BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices advancing 1.2 and 1.7% each, respectively.

The overall breadth is extremely positive as 1,758 stocks are advancing while 764 are declining.