The markets have opened on a positive note with the Sensex up 47 points at 17,988, and the Nifty started the day at 5,414, gaining nine points. Meanwhile, the broader markets have opened strong with the smallcap and the midcap indices up 0.3% each as compared to the Sensex, up 0.2%. Currently, the Sensex is up 53 points at 17,993 and the Nifty added 17 points at 5,421.
Overnight in the US markets, the S&P 500 index rose, snapping a seven-day losing streak, but worries about the economy kept investors jittery and trading volatile. Trading was the busiest since mid-March, with more than 10 billion shares changing hands as the S&P dipped to a new low for 2011 before storming back to finish higher.
The Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.2%, at 11,896. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was up 0.5%, at 1,260. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 0.9%, at 2,693.
In the Asian markets, the indices were largely in the green. The Nikkei was the top gainer, up 0.9% as Japan intervened in currency markets to curb the yen's gains that officials fear threatened to derail the economy's recovery from a slump triggered by a massive earthquake in March.
The other notable gainers were Shanghai Composite, Jakarta Composite and KLSE Composite adding 0.4%. The Hang Seng has gained 0.1%.
Back home, among the sectoral indices, Capital Goods, Metal and Power indices are leading the gains up 0.6% each. Meanwhile, FMCG has started in the negative, down 0.6% along with the Auto index down 0.4%. The draggers in the FMCG space are ITC and Dabur India, losing 1% and 0.5% respectively.
The top gainers among the Sensex stocks in the opening trades are Reliance Infrasrtucture up 2% followed by HDFC, Jaiprakash Associates and HDFC Bank gaining 1% each.
Among the losers are ITC,Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors,Bharti Airtel and Maruti Suzuki starting the day, down 1% each.
The market breadth is positive. 762 stocks have advanced while 310 have declined on the BSE.
