Key benchmark indices further strengthened and hit fresh intraday high in mid-morning trade on renewed buying. At 11:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 201.51 points or 0.68% at 29,777.25. The Nifty 50 index was up 52.85 points or 0.58% at 9,234.30. Index heavyweight ITC led gains. Telecom stocks gained while cement stocks were mixed. Indices are set to snap previous three sessions of losses. Domestic bourses bucked weak trend witnessed in most of the Asian markets.
The Sensex rose 211.31 points or 0.71% at the day's high of 29,787.05 in mid-morning trade. It fell 5.16 points or 0.01% at the day's low of 29,570.58 in early trade. The Nifty gained 56.15 points or 0.61% at the day's high of 9,237.60 in mid-morning trade, its highest level since 7 April 2017. It fell 8.60 points or 0.09% at the day's low of 9,172.85 in early trade, its lowest level since 31 March 2017.
The buying in small cap and mid cap counters continued unabated. The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.7%. The BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.77%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The broad market depicted strength. There were more than two gainers against every loser on BSE. 1,699 shares rose and 727 shares fell. A total of 108 shares were unchanged.
Index heavyweight and cigarette maker ITC gained 1.92%. The stock was the top gainer from the Sensex pack.
Telecom stocks gained. Bharti Airtel (up 0.26%), Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 2.04%) Reliance Communications (RCom) (up 0.8%) and Idea Cellular (up 0.46%) gained.
Shares of Bharti Infratel gained 0.43%. Bharti Infratel is a provider of tower and related infrastructure and is a unit of Bharti Airtel.
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Cement stocks were mixed. Shree Cement (up 0.07%) and Ambuja Cements (up 0.37%) gained. UltraTech Cement (down 0.56%) and ACC (down 0.32%) declined.
Grasim Industries advanced 0.03%. Grasim has exposure to the cement sector through its holding in UltraTech Cement.
Redington (India) rose 1.67% after the company announced that its overseas step down subsidiary, Arena Bilgisayar Sanayi Ve Ticaret A.S sold its entire holding of 51% in its subsidiary, Adeo Bilisim Danismanlik Hizmetleri San ve Tic AS, Turkey, for $1.65 million. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 10 April 2017.
Rural Electrification Corporation jumped 6.81% on report that the company is looking at diversifying to financing equipment manufacturing, energy efficiency schemes, power plants renovation and coal blocks development.
The company's Chairman PV Ramesh was quoted by media as saying that REC is looking at diversifying from power sector lending to financing equipment manufacturing, energy efficiency schemes, power plants renovation and coal blocks development. Ramesh reportedly added the company is even considering changing its name to suit its diversification plans.
Overseas, Asian stocks declined as rising tensions in the Middle East and political uncertainty in Europe kept investors on edge, underpinning safe assets such as the yen, gold and treasuries.
The upcoming French presidential election and the heightened tensions in the Middle East following the US strikes on Syria have left investors nervous even as a raft of global data over recent months have pointed to a steadily improving global economy. In France, polls for many weeks have been showing centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen on track to top the first round of voting on 23 April and go through to a 7 May runoff.
US stocks closed fractionally higher yesterday, 10 April 2017, amid geopolitical tensions while investors looked ahead to the start of earnings season.
Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen indicated yesterday that the era of extremely stimulative monetary policy was coming to an end. In a public discussion at the University of Michigan, Yellen said the Fed was moving away from its efforts to revive a recession-scarred economy and focusing instead on maintaining the gains of the past few years.
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