Key indices held firm in afternoon trade. At 13:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 149.26 points or 0.44% at 33,997.29. The Nifty 50 index was up 37.25 points or 0.36% at 10,515.15. The Sensex was currently trading below the psychological 34,000 mark after having alternately moved above and below that mark earlier in the day. Firmness in Asian stocks supported gains on the domestic bourses.
Trading for the last session of 2017 began on a positive note. Fresh buying in index pivotals pushed the key benchmark indices to fresh intraday high in morning trade. Stocks held firm later during the session.
Among secondary indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.41%, underperforming the Sensex. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.6%, outperforming the Sensex.
The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1,565 shares rose and 1,031 shares fell. A total of 188 shares were unchanged.
IT stocks advanced. Tech Mahindra (up 0.2%), HCL Technologies (up 1.43%), TCS (up 1.41%), Infosys (up 0.42%), Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.98%) and MphasiS (up 1.19%) edged higher. Wipro declined 0.88%.
Auto stocks also gained. Ashok Leyland (up 0.13%), Maruti Suzuki India (up 1.05%), Eicher Motors (up 0.27%), Bajaj Auto (up 0.15%), Hero MotoCorp (up 1.33%), Tata Motors (up 1.54%) and TVS Motor Company (up 0.98%) gained. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) declined 0.37%.
PG Electroplast rose 2.62% after the company said that its promoter group has sold 4 lakh shares totaling to 2.44% of the shareholding in the market yesterday, 28 December 2017. The announcement was made during market hours today, 29 December 2017.
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The proceeds from the sales will be infused back into the company as the unsecured zero coupon loan to the company and with this infusion, company's ongoing growth plans will get further boost and capex and working capital requirement will be met completely.
The company's management continues to see exciting opportunities and with new capacities and newly installed PU paint and tooling capabilities, company is uniquely positioned in the consumer durable & automotive plastics space in India, it added.
Among macro economic data, India's infrastructure output data for the month of November 2017 will be released today, 29 December 2017. Infrastructure output in India increased 4.7% year-on-year in October of 2017, following a downwardly revised 4.7% rise in the previous month.
Overseas, most Asian stocks rose after Wall Street finished with modest gains. South Korean markets were closed today, 29 December 2017. US stocks rose yesterday, 28 December 2017, with the Dow Jones industrial average closing at a record high buoyed mostly by gains in bank shares and a slight pick-up in energy and materials.
In US economic data, the advance trade deficit in goods increased to $69.7 billion in November from $68.1 billion in October. The purchasing managers index for Chicago showed a rise of 67.6 in December from 63.9 in the previous month. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion.
In Europe, Italy's President Sergio Mattarella dissolved parliament yesterday, 28 December 2017 and called elections for early March 2018, a vote that will highlight the economic and political problems still stalking Europe and the country's role as the weakest flank in the currency union.
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