Markets flat, FMCG stocks gain

Markets traded on a flat note in the mid-morning deals The Sensex was 18,522, up 20 points while the S&P CNX Nifty at 5,569, up 2 points.

According to Ashish Chaturmohta, Vice President ( Derivatives & Technical Analyst), IIFL Wealth, "Nifty is trading sideways where 5,660 levels is an important resistance, above which 5,695-5,720 levels can be tested whereas on the downside, 5,540 acts as an immediate support, below which market can drag towards 5,500-5,460 levels."

Asian markets were also trading with a negative bias. Taiwan lost 11 points and was at 8,694. Nikkei shed 3 points to 10,002 and the Hang Seng was at 21,953, lower by 50 points.

Back home, Hindustan Unilver was the top gainer among the Sensex stocks. The stock advanced 1.3% to Rs 335. ONGC also gained 1% at Rs 278. Tata Motors, Infosys, ITC, Wipro, Reliance Infrastructure, HDFC and J P Associates were also trading higher by 0.3-1% each in trades so far. On the other hand Hero Honda led the losers chart ahead of Q1 earnings. The stock shed 1.2% to Rs 1,739. HDFC Bank also shed nearly 1% to Rs 498. Hindalco, Cipla, DLF, Reliance Communications, BHEL, Bharti Airtel, TCS and Reliance Industries also among the losers.

On the sectoral front FMCG stocks, witnessed some buying. The BSE FMCG index was the top sectoral gainer, up 0.6% or 25 points at 4,108. IT index also gained 0.5% to 5,865. PSU and Oil & Gas indices were also trading marginally higher. Meanwhile, realty, consumer durables, healthcare and banking stocks reeled under the selling pressure. The BSE Realty index was down 0.9% or 19 points at 2,211. Consumer Durables index shed 0.8% to 6,906 points. Healthcare, Bankex, Auto and Metal indices also shed 0.2-0.7% each.

Marico, hindustan Unilever, Nestle, Godrej Consumer Products and ITC were the top gainers among the FMCG stocks. Among the realty stocks Indiabulls Real Estate was the top loser, down 2.3% to Rs 117. Phoenix Mills, Unitech, DLF, Sobha Developers, Orbit Corp and Mahindra Lifespace Developers also reeled under the selling pressure.

The broader markets were trading on a lacklustre note the BSE mid-cap index was at 6,982, down 6 points and the small-cap index was at 8,438, higher by 5 points.

The overall breadth was neutral as 1,202 stocks were advancing while 1,200 stocks were declining.

On the corporate earnings front, Biocon announced 8.7% fall in Q1 net profit at Rs 70.05 crore. Following this development the stock shed 2.9% to Rs 360. Indiabulls Financial Service reported increase of 67% in its net profit to Rs 219.5 crore. The stock advanced 3.5% to Rs 178.