 "Profit taking in heavyweights drag Nifty off record highs")
Markets have come off day highs with profit taking at higher levels. At 1245 hrs, the Sensex was up 58 points at 26,419 and the Nifty was up 15 points at 7,906. Weakness in HDFC, ITC and Coal India weighed on the indices in noon trades.
Earlier in the day, Nifty hit a record high of 7,929.05, marking its fourth record high this week, surpassing the previous all-time high on Wednesday.
Activity was sparse in the broader markets with a divergent trend. The smallcap index was down 0.1% while the midcap index was flat with a positive bias.
Banking and IT indices were the top sectoral gainers, up 1% each. On the other hand, Realty and FMCG indices were down by nearly a percent each.
Shares of state-owned banks were trading higher by up to 4%, extending their previous day’s rally, after the finance minister Arun Jaitley said that government is taking steps to professionalise the management of PSU banks and help them strengthen their risk management system.
SBI, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India and Syndicate Bank were up 2-4%. Most of these stocks had rallied between 1-8% on Thursday.
IT majors, TCS, Infosys and Wipro gained 0.5-1%.
Some of the other notable gainers were Hindalco, M&M and L&T up 1-3%.
Among the ones in red were Coal India, HDFC, Dr Reddys, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Auto and ITC down 1-1.5%.
Meanwhile shares of gems and jewellery makers firmed up 2-5% on hopes of export orders from the US ahead of the festive season after recent data showed that the world's largest economy is showing signs of an uptick.
Rajesh Exports was up 3%, PC Jeweller gained 1.6%, Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri rose 3.6%, Shrenuj was up 1.5%, Shree Ganesh Jewellery House surged 6.7% and Tara Jewels jumped 5.2%.
The market breadth was marginally negative on BSE. 1,385 stocks declined while 1,353 stocks advanced.
Global Markets
Asian markets were largely in green, poised for a weekly gain, after upbeat U.S. economic data sparked another record close on Wall Street.
Still, investors were cautious ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the day at the annual gathering of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which will be studied for any fresh signals about the timing of U.S. interest rate increases.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.6 percent, on track for a weekly gain of about 0.9 percent and within a few points of its July 30 high, which was its loftiest level since January 2008.
Japan's Nikkei stock average erased earlier gains and shed 0.3 percent, breaking its nine-session winning streak but still marking a robust 1.4 percent weekly gain.
On the other hand, European markets were flat with a negative bias.
Earlier in the day, Nifty hit a record high of 7,929.05, marking its fourth record high this week, surpassing the previous all-time high on Wednesday.
Activity was sparse in the broader markets with a divergent trend. The smallcap index was down 0.1% while the midcap index was flat with a positive bias.
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Sectors & Stocks
Banking and IT indices were the top sectoral gainers, up 1% each. On the other hand, Realty and FMCG indices were down by nearly a percent each.
Shares of state-owned banks were trading higher by up to 4%, extending their previous day’s rally, after the finance minister Arun Jaitley said that government is taking steps to professionalise the management of PSU banks and help them strengthen their risk management system.
SBI, Punjab National Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India and Syndicate Bank were up 2-4%. Most of these stocks had rallied between 1-8% on Thursday.
IT majors, TCS, Infosys and Wipro gained 0.5-1%.
Some of the other notable gainers were Hindalco, M&M and L&T up 1-3%.
Among the ones in red were Coal India, HDFC, Dr Reddys, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Auto and ITC down 1-1.5%.
Meanwhile shares of gems and jewellery makers firmed up 2-5% on hopes of export orders from the US ahead of the festive season after recent data showed that the world's largest economy is showing signs of an uptick.
Rajesh Exports was up 3%, PC Jeweller gained 1.6%, Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri rose 3.6%, Shrenuj was up 1.5%, Shree Ganesh Jewellery House surged 6.7% and Tara Jewels jumped 5.2%.
The market breadth was marginally negative on BSE. 1,385 stocks declined while 1,353 stocks advanced.
Global Markets
Asian markets were largely in green, poised for a weekly gain, after upbeat U.S. economic data sparked another record close on Wall Street.
Still, investors were cautious ahead of a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen later in the day at the annual gathering of central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, which will be studied for any fresh signals about the timing of U.S. interest rate increases.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.6 percent, on track for a weekly gain of about 0.9 percent and within a few points of its July 30 high, which was its loftiest level since January 2008.
Japan's Nikkei stock average erased earlier gains and shed 0.3 percent, breaking its nine-session winning streak but still marking a robust 1.4 percent weekly gain.
On the other hand, European markets were flat with a negative bias.