Benchmarks trade in fine fettle led by IT

After a mildly negative close in previous session, Indian equity markets made a positive start and are now trading in fine fettle with the gains of around quarter a percent, led by gains in IT and TECK stocks. At present, Sensex and Nifty were trading above the crucial 28,450 and 8,600 levels respectively. Meanwhile, broader indices also trading in line with larger counterparts were up with gains in the range of 0.15-0.20%. The sentiment also got a boost on reports that Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 714.40 crore on July 20 2015, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.  However, there will be some cautiousness in the market ahead of the monsoon session of Parliament that begins today.

In scrip specific development, Bharti Airtel was trading higher after the company entered into exclusive talks with France's Orange to sell its subsidiaries in Africa. On other hand, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries plunged after the company said its profit might be 'adversely impacted' in financial year 2015-16 (FY16), due to expenses related to its integration with Ranbaxy, as well as remedial action at plants under the scanner.

On the global front, the US markets ended higher as a better-than-expected start to corporate earnings season boosted investor confidence. Asian markets were trading mixed; with some indices moving higher tracking gains on Wall Street as well as the decline in gold and other commodity prices overnight.

Back home traders were piling up position in IT, TECK, Consumer Durables, Metal and Capital Goods, while selling was witnessed in Healthcare, Realty, Oil & Gas, FMCG and INFRA. The market breadth on BSE was positive in the ratio of 956: 770 while 73 scrips remained unchanged.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 28462.94, up by 42.82 points or 0.15% after trading in a range of 28354.81 and 28518.06. There were 13 stocks advancing against 17 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green and red; the BSE Mid cap index was down by 0.17%, while Small cap index up by 0.15%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were IT up by 3.31%, TECK up by 2.98%, Consumer Durables up by 0.73%, Metal up by 0.09% and Capital Goods up by 0.05%, while Healthcare down by 3.32%, Realty down by 0.96%, Oil & Gas down by 0.39%, FMCG down by 0.34%, INFRA down by 0.26% and Power down by 0.15% were the losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Infosys up by 7.76%, Bharti Airtel up by 3.75%, Wipro up by 1.64%, Coal India up by 0.99% and HDFC up by 0.64%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 11.27%, Lupin down by 1.39%, Vedanta down by 1.29%, ONGC down by 1.03% and GAIL India down by 0.94% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, pitching for more investments in Railways has said that “The Indian economy will grow by 2 to 3 percent more with increased investments in the railways as reforms in transportation sector are vital to exploit full growth potential of the country.”

Prabhu said that the railways should be seen as a new medium of development for the country in future. He pointed that congestion was one of the main problems faced by the Indian railways, the minister added that doubling and tripling of the lines can happen only with a hike in investment in the sector.

He said that if the country's railway network is pumped with a massive investment to boost the connectivity, the Indian economy will register an increased growth by 2-3 per cent. He pointed that congestion was one of the main problems faced by the Indian railways.

The Railway Minister further disclosed that the tendering process of the railways and other commercial decisions were not being handled by the railway minister in the NDA government, as far as the delegation and decentralisation of power to the departments is concerned. He added that Railway minister now works only on policy execution. Decentralisation of power of decision making, if necessary, is in the interest of a transparent administration

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 8622.15, up by 18.70 points or 0.22% after trading in a range of 8588.25 and 8646.75. There were 18 stocks advancing against 32 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Infosys up by 8.21%, Bharti Airtel up by 3.62%, HCL Tech. up by 1.72%, Wipro up by 1.40% and Zee Entertainment up by 1.35%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 10.90%, Ultratech Cement down by 1.59%, Lupin down by 1.42%, Tata Power down by 1.34% and Grasim Industries down by 1.17% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mix; Taiwan Weighted increased 2.07 points or 0.02% to 8,977.07, Shanghai Composite increased 10.53 points or 0.26% to 4,002.64, Hang Seng increased 88.4 points or 0.35% to 25,493.21 and Nikkei 225 increased 102.83 points or 0.5% to 20,753.75

On the flip side, KOSPI Index decreased 0.94 points or 0.05% to 2,072.37, Straits Times decreased 0.44 points or 0.01% to 3,373.04 and FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI decreased 0.03 points or 0% to 1,724.10