Markets tad up led by gains in Bharti, RIL

Software makers, Oil and gas sector aid buying

Indian shares opened up and traded in a narrow range in the early morning trades led by gains in Bharti Airtel, Idea and index-heavyweight Reliance Industries.

At 9:40AM, the Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensex gained 53 poinst to 18,524.20 while the National Stock Exchange's Nifty index added 10points to 5,641.05.

The US markets ended weak on Thursday as investors preferred to stay defensive. The market expects politicians to fight over impending tax and spending changes, while retailer Wal-Mart tumbled after disappointing results.

The Dow Jones industrial average declined 29 points, or 0.23%, to 12,542 at the close. The Nasdaq dropped 10 points, or 0.35%, to 2,837. The S&P 500 lost 2 points, or 0.16%, to 1,353.

Asian shares steadied on Friday after falling nearly 2% this week amid concerns about the looming US "fiscal cliff", while Japanese stocks rallied for a second day on expectations of further monetary policy easing after an election next month.

The top sector gainers on BSE were oil and gas, technology and capital goods which moved up nearly 0.5% while consumer durables sector led the declines booking a loss of 0.4%.

Telecom major Bharti Airtel and Idea rose over 1% while Reliance Industries, the second-most weighted stock on Sensex gained 0.8% in the opening trades.

Nikkei has rallied 1.9% to 8995, Indonesia is up 0.44% while Hong Kong is up 0.4% and Shanghai Composite is down 0.9%

The broader markets traded up with the BSE mid-cap and small-cap indices trading higher 0.5% each.

The overall breadth was positive as 892 stocks advanced while 425 declined.