Bourses enlarge gains in late afternoon session

Indian markets traded near day’s high levels in late afternoon session ahead of monthly F&O expiry. Sentiments were upbeat on the back of strong earnings from major companies. Buying in Metal and IT stocks lifted the mood of the markets. Besides, Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das said the Indian banking system has remained resilient and not adversely impacted by recent events in the global financial ecosystem. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in green as a string of strong tech earnings offset lingering concerns about the U.S. banking sector. European markets were trading higher as investors reacted to a slew of earnings results and looked forward to the release of U.S. GDP data later in the day for directional cues.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 60487.43, up by 186.85 points or 0.31% after trading in a range of 60271.49 and 60561.14. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.40%, while Small cap index was up by 0.51%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Realty up by 1.56%, Telecom up by 0.94%, IT up by 0.91%, Metal up by 0.73% and TECK was up by 0.72%, while Power down by 0.34%, Utilities down by 0.19%, PSU down by 0.12%, Consumer Durables down by 0.07% and FMCG was down by 0.06% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Bajaj Finance up by 2.37%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.00%, Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 1.37%, Bharti Airtel up by 1.17% and Infosys up by 1.16%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.49%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.43%, Axis Bank down by 0.87%, TCS down by 0.59% and SBI down by 0.53% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, few weeks after the blow-up of the Silicon Valley Bank, which led to distress in the financial sector in the US and Europe, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das has said that the Indian banking system has remained resilient and not adversely impacted by recent events in the global financial ecosystem.

At a global conference on financial resilience organised by RBI-promoted College of Supervisors, the Governor Das said that RBI's stress tests show Indian banks will be able to maintain their capital buffers above the minimum requirements even in the case of the most distressing of events.
However, he said that financial sector surprises can come from anywhere at a time when participants world over are adopting unconventional policies, and urged the stakeholders to be watchful, adding that the RBI is committed for future proofing of the Indian financial system and to provide support for its sustainable growth.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 17875.30, up by 61.70 points or 0.35% after trading in a range of 17797.90 and 17891.65. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Bajaj Finance up by 2.49%, Bajaj Auto up by 2.17%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.03%, UPL up by 1.88% and Dr. Reddy's Lab up by 1.83%. On the flip side, HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.76%, Hindustan Unilever down by 1.61%, Power Grid down by 1.34%, Adani Ports down by 0.96% and Axis Bank down by 0.86% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mostly in green, Hang Seng advanced 83.01 points or 0.42% to 19,840.28, Nikkei 225 surged 41.21 points or 0.14% to 28,457.68, Taiwan Weighted added 36.86 points or 0.24% to 15,411.49, Jakarta Composite gained 34.42 points or 0.5% to 6,944.57, Shanghai Composite strengthened 21.78 points or 0.66% to 3,285.88 and KOSPI was up by 10.98 points or 0.44% to 2,495.81. On the flip side, Straits Times was down by 10.26 points or 0.31% to 3,283.65.

European markets were trading higher, UK’s FTSE 100 increased 3.54 points or 0.05% to 7,856.18, France’s CAC rose 28.91 points or 0.39% to 7,495.57 and Germany’s DAX was up by 13.76 points or 0.09% to 15,809.49.