The benchmark indices were trading with decent gains in morning trade, supported by firmness in Infosys (up 2.23%), Bajaj Finance (up 2.61%) and HDFC Bank (up 0.44%). The Nifty traded above 17,250 level. Banks and IT shares were in demand while autos, pharma and media shares declined.
At 10:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 170.36 points or 0.29% at 57,958.39. The Nifty 50 index gained 47.50 points or 0.28% at 17,268.90.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.31% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.21%.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,542 shares rose and 1,533 shares fell. A total of 110 shares were unchanged.
Global cues were mildly positive after the US central bank on Wednesday announced that it would put an end to its pandemic-era bond purchases in March and would raise the interest rates thrice in the upcoming year to battle growing inflation.
Attention now turns to policy announcements later Thursday from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, which are also aiming to control the heated inflation.
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Back home, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 3,407.04 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 1,553.01 crore in the Indian equity market on 15 December 2021, provisional data showed.
Economy:
India has attracted highest ever annual Foreign Direct Investment, FDI inflow of 81.97 billion US dollars in the current fiscal year despite the challenges posed by Covid-19 pandemic. This was stated by Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash in a written reply in the Lok Sabha on 15 December 2021.
The Minister said, India has received FDI inflow worth 440.27 billion US dollars in the last seven years. He said, this is nearly 58% of the FDI reported in the last 21 years. He said, India is becoming a preferred investment destination amongst global investors.
Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 15 December 2021, said that the global economy remained hostage to heightened uncertainty, with the Omicron strain of the coronavirus, sparking fresh containment measures. The Indian economy bounced back strongly in the second quarter of 2021-22, with the gross domestic product (GDP) surpassing its pre-pandemic levels and inflation broadly aligning with the target.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty IT index rose 1.31% to 36,205.15. The index fell 1.01% in the previous trading session.
Wipro (up 1.74%), L&T Technology Services (LTTS) (up 1.68%), MindTree (up 1.57%) and Larsen & Toubro Infotech (LTI) (up 1.57%) were the top gainers in the IT segment.
Infosys advanced 2.23% after the IT major on Thursday announced an extension of its digital innovation partnership with the Australian Open until the end of 2026. The expanded collaboration will see Infosys and Tennis Australia continue to harness big data and analytics, artificial intelligence, virtual reality and cloud technologies to elevate the Australian Open experience for fans, players, coaches, partners and the media.
The collaboration aims to focus on enhanced broadcast statistics to increase fan engagement, delivering new innovations for fans, players, and the media, driving the digital experience vision with an end-to-end design assessment and inclusivity and greater access to the underprivileged and grassroots community.
Stocks in Spotlight:
MEP Infrastructure Developers rallied 2.30% after the company said its special purpose vehicle (SPV) signed a concession agreement for a road project with the Public Works Department (PWD), Government of Maharashtra. In October 2021, MEP Infrastructure Developers in association with Ozoneland secured a Letter of Award (LoA) for a road project from PWD, Government of Maharashtra. The contract is for executing improvements to Solapur Ring Road in Maharashtra under hybrid annuity mode.
Larsen & Toubro (L&T) rose 0.18%. On Thursday, the EPC major announced that its Power Transmission & Distribution business bagged 'large' contracts India and overseas. According L&T's classification, the value of 'large' contracts lies between Rs 2,500 crore to Rs 5,000 crore.
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