After trading with small gains in the morning trade, key benchmark indices hovered near the flat line in mid-morning trade. At 11:15 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex rose 5.37 points or 0.02% at 31,530.05. The Nifty 50 index advanced 12.90 points or 0.13% at 9,850.30. Market sentiment was subdued amid lackluster trading in Asian bourses and weaker closing on the Wall Street last Friday.
IT stocks advanced even as Infosys extended previous trading session's sharp losses. Cement stocks witnessed a mixed trend.
Among secondary indices, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.06%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index advanced 0.2%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1,207 shares rose and 991 shares declined. A total of 106 shares were unchanged.
IT stocks edged higher. Tech Mahindra (up 1.4%), TCS (up 0.71%), Wipro (up 0.57%) and HCL Technologies (up 0.21%) gained.
Infosys declined 2.84% at Rs 896.85 on media reports that four US law firms said they would be investigating claims on behalf of Infosys investors whether some of the officers and directors of the company engaged in securities fraud. This development follows the sudden resignation of CEO Vishal Sikka and the steep drop in share prices on Friday, 18 August 2017.
Meanwhile, Infosys' board at its meeting held on Saturday, 19 August 2017, approved a proposal to buyback upto 11.30 crore shares, aggregating up to 4.92% of the paid-up equity capital, at Rs 1,150 per share. The maximum buyback size is Rs 13000 crore. The buyback price is at a premium of 24.58% over the stock's closing price of Rs 923.10 on the BSE on Friday, 18 August 2017.
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Cement stocks were mixed. Grasim Industries (up 1.31%), UltraTech Cement (up 0.66%) and ACC (up 0.5%) edged higher. Ambuja Cements (down 0.24%) and Shree Cement (down 0.13%) declined.
IOL Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals surged 8.8% at Rs 68.60 after net profit spurted 319.7% to Rs 2.98 crore on 32.9% increase in net sales to Rs 215.31 crore in Q1 June 2017 over Q1 June 2016. The result was announced after market hours on Friday, 18 August 2017.
Overseas, Asian stocks witnessed a mixed trend amid geopolitical concerns as US-South Korea military drills begin. US equities closed off their session lows on Friday, 18 August 2017 after Steve Bannon, one of President Donald Trump's top advisors, left the administration. Reports suggested that tension between Bannon and other top advisors to Trump, including Chief Economic Advisor Gary Cohn and National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster, had been festering inside the White House.
As per reports, joint US-South Korea military exercises take place from 21 August to 31 August 2017. This exercise comes on the back of a ramp up in geopolitical tensions earlier this month after a heated exchange of rhetoric between President Donald Trump and Pyongyang.
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