Indian shares rose on Friday, mirroring gains in the U.S. and European markets overnight and a firm trend across Asia this morning as comments from German Chancellor Angela Merkel helped keep hopes for more ECB stimulus alive.
The benchmark BSE Sensex is currently trading near the day's high at 17,791, up 135 points or 0.76 percent from its previous close, while the broader Nifty index is up 34 points or 0.63 percent at 5,397.
Second-line stocks are outperforming frontline stocks and the market breadth is extremely positive, with gaining shares outpacing declining ones in the ratio of about 3:1 on the BSE. FMCG, IT and auto stocks are leading the gainers, while capital goods and realty stocks are subdued.
Maruti Suzuki India is moving up a percent. The passenger vehicles manufacturer announced that it would lift the lock-out at its Manesar plant on August 21. Tata Power is up 0.6 percent after ratings agency CRISIL assigned 'AA' rating to its proposed issue of unsecured debentures.
TCS is gaining a percent as it entered into an agreement to buy Pune-based start-up Computational Research Laboratories, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Sons, for Rs 188 crore. Tata Motors is climbing 2.4 percent after reporting a 21 percent rise in July global sales. ITC is up 1.3 percent on bargain hunting after yesterday's steep fall.
Tata Global Beverages is gaining 1.8 percent as it bought the balance 49 percent stake it didn't already own in SuntyCo Holding, the owner of the 'Grand' business in Russia. Gitanjali Gems is moving up 1.4 percent after it bought a 15.3 percent stake in Japanese firm Verite for Rs 25 crore.
Unity Infraprojects is gaining 1.4 percent on winning orders worth Rs.321.91 crore. Cairn India is adding 1.1 percent after it bought a 60 percent stake from PetroSA in an oil and gas exploration block in the Orange Basin off South Africa.
Retailers and aviation companies are gaining ground after Commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma hinted at opening up of multi-brand retail and civil aviation to foreign investment in the next three weeks. Pantaloon Retail is gaining 1.5 percent and Trent is adding a percent, while Kingfisher Airlines is moving up over 2 percent.
Lupin and UltraTech Cement are up 1-2 percent after the National Stock Exchange included these stocks in place of SAIL and Sterlite in the benchmark Nifty index from September 28.
Indian shares edged lower on Thursday, as weakness in FMCG, metal and banking stocks overshadowed gains in Reliance Industries, capital goods and auto stocks. The benchmark 30-share Sensex moved in a narrow range before ending down 71 points or 0.4 percent at 17,657, while the broader Nifty index fell by 17 points or 0.32 percent to 5,363.
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