Markets extend gains

RIL top gainer among the Sensex stocks

Markets continue to trade on a strong note in the morning deals on the back of supportive global cues which has led to widespread buying visible across the board. The Sensex is up 220 points at 17,417 aqnd the 50-share Nifty has jumped 67 points to 5,282 levels.

Meanwhile, index heavyweigh Reliance Industries is the top gainer among the Sensex stocks. It is trading higher by nearly 5% at Rs 778 also its highest level since April 2012, in morning deals on the National Stock Exchange. The stock opened at Rs 748 and has seen a combined 564,951 shares changing hands on the counter in opening trades. It has contributed 70 points to the upmove in the Sensex.

According to reports, RIL has agreed to share KG-D6 accounts with the national auditor under the terms of the production sharing contract (PSC), meeting a key demand of oil minister Jaipal Reddy ahead of a crucial meeting of the block's management committee.

Tata Motors, Tata Steel, Larsen & Toubro, Sterlite Industries, Jindal Steel, GAIL India, ICICI Bank, BHEL and HDFC Bank are also trading higher by 1.4-3% each.

On the other hand, Coal India, TCS and HUL are among the notable losers from the heavyweight space.

Among the individual stocks, SKS Microfinance has rallied 15% to Rs 103, after the company said its losses in the quarter ended June 2012 narrowed sharply on the back of a drop in bad debt provisions and loan write-offs.

Orissa Mineral Development Company (OMDC) has frozen at its upper circuit of 5% at Rs 57,516, extending its past eight days rally on reports of stock split and bonus issue plans.
---------------------------------------------
(Updated at 9:20 AM)

Markets have opened on a strong note in trades today tracking positive global cues. The Sensex has jumped 115 points to open at 17,313 and the Nifty has advanced 54 points to open at 5,269 levels.

Asian shares rallied to a three-month high and the euro touched a one-month high against the dollar on Monday, as a stronger-than-expected US jobs data and emerging optimism for European action on the debt crisis bolstered risk appetite. The Hang Seng was up 395 points at 20,061, Nikkei jumped 147 points to 8,702 and the Shanghai Composite was up 8 points at 2,141.

The Dow Jones ended higher by 1.7% at 13,096, Nasdaq advanced 2% to 2,967 and the S&P 500 advanced 1.9% to close at 1,390.

Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said in an interview that Italy needs moral support from Germany but not its cash, as German conservatives renewed calls for Greece to leave the Euro zone.

Back home, most of the stocks from the Nifty pack have opened higher. Tata Motors is the top gainer, up nearly 3% to open at Rs 227. JP Associates, Tata Steel, Reliance Industries, SAIL, Reliance Infrastructure, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank and Larsen & Toubro have also opened higher by 1.5-2.4% each.

On the other hand, TCS, ONGC and BPCL are among the notable losers from the Nifty pack.

All the sectoral indices have opened higher. The BSE metal index is the top sectoral gainer, up 121 points at 10,323 levels. Bankex, auto, capital goods, oil & gas, power and healthcare indices have also opened higher by 0.8-1% each.

From the metal space, JSW Steel, Tata Steel, SAIL, Sterlite Industries, Hindalco, Jindal Steel and Sesa Goa are among the top gainers.

The broader markets are under performing the benchmark indices. The BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices have opened on a flat note.

The overall breadth is positive as 868 stocks are advancing while 225 are declining.