 "Nifty holds 8,250 amid rangebound trade")
Markets gained for the third straight session led by index heavyweights even as profit taking was seen in select stocks which surged last week.
The 30-share Sensex provisionally ended up 142 points at 27,356 and the 50-share Nifty closed 35 points higher at 8,274.
_____________________
(Updated at 2:15PM)
Benchmark share indices continued to trade firm in noon deals on Monday led by index heavyweights Reliance Industries and Infosys along with FMCG majors.
At 2:15pm, the 30-share Sensex was up 151 points at 27,366 and the 50-share Nifty was up 32 points at 8,271.
In the broader market, BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.4-0.6%. Market breadth was strong with 1,485 gainers and 1,072 losers on the BSE.
The Indian rupee is trading flat at 64.78 against the dollar today on fresh selling of the US currency by exporters amid sustained foreign fund inflows.
EARNINGS CORNER
HCL Technologies, India's fourth-largest software services exporter by revenue, today reported a 3.2% dip in its Q1 net profit at Rs 1,726 crore on a sequential basis.
The company had posted a net profit of Rs 1,783 crore for the fourth quarter ended June 30, 2015. On an annual basis, the net profit was down 7.9%. Analysts on an average had expected a net profit of Rs 1,723 crore. The stock is flat at 0.04%
Among other companies which will be announcing their quarterly results today are Ultratech Cement, SKS Microfinance and Petronet LNG
GLOBAL MARKETS
Asian markets pared early gains to end lower on Monday after China, the world's second largest economy, posted its weakest quarterly economic growth, raising fears of a global growth slowdown. Japan's Nikkei ended down 0.9% while Shanghai Composite eased 0.1%. However, Hang Seng was flat with positive bias while Straits Times was down 0.1%.
SECTORS & STOCKS
BSE Healthcare, IT, FMCG, Oil & Gas were the top gainers while Auto, Bankex and Metal were the top losers.
Reliance Industries was the top Sensex gainer up 5% after the company reported better-than-expected net profit growth at 12% in the second-quarter aided hby higher gross refining margins. The company’s gross refining margin (GRMs) for the September quarter stood at $10.6 a barrel, against $8.3 a barrel in the year-ago period.
Infosys was up 1.5% after the company announced a definitive agreement to acquire Noah Consulting, LLC, for $70 million (approx. Rs 450 crore) in all-cash deal.
Vedanta was up 0.4% after the group signed an early agreement to invest around Rs8,400 crore to expand and develop its mineral and mining base in Rajasthan.
Hindustan Unilever was up 1% after the FMCG major turns ex-dividend today for dividend of Rs 6.50 per share for the year ending 31 March 2016 (FY 2016).
Tata Motors was down 1.5% on account of profit booking after gains of nearly 30% during the month so far.
Among other shares, Shares of CRISIL were up over 1% at Rs 2,009 after the company said its board, at its meeting held on October 17, 2015, approved the proposal to invest in financial technology companies in areas/sectors that are deemed strategic for CRISIL.
