MARKET: Sensex up 400 pts, Nifty tests 18,300; Nifty Bank hits fresh record

Markets at 10 AM LIVE markets update: The benchmark indices are holding on to their opening highs, although some pressure in the metal space is capping gains. At 10:05 AM, the BSE Sensex index was at 61,327 levels, up 403 points or 0.66 per cent. It touched an intra-day high of 61,420 levels earlier today. It’s NSE counterpart, too, was off the morning high of 18,314 level, and quoted at 18,281 level, up 103 points. Among individual stocks, shares of the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) rallied 10 per cent to Rs 832.85 on the BSE in Friday’s intra-day trade, after the company posted strong earnings for the second quarter ended September 2021 (Q2FY21) and also announced bonus shares in the ratio of 2:1.

The stock, however, partially pared gains and was trading 4 per cent higher at Rs 789.15 on the BSE. READ MORE

============================================================ Opening Bell (Updated at 9:20 AM) LIVE market updates: Tepid global cues and rising crude oil prices are keeping indices volatile on Dalal Street. In early deals, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was up 209 points at 61,133 levels while the NSE’s Nifty50 was at 18,228, up 50 points.

PowerGrid, Titan, HDFC, Axis Bank, and Reliance Industries were the top gainers on the 30-pack Sensex while Asian Paints, HCL Tech, Infosys, Tata Steel, and Dr Reddy’s Labs were trading as biggest laggards.

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices advanced 0.22 per cent each. On the sectoral front, barring the Nifty IT index (down 0.13 per cent) and the Nifty Metal index (down 0.4 per cent), all the other indices were trading higher on the National Stock Exchange. The Nifty Bank index hit a fresh record high of 40,326 in early deals today, before retreating to 40,179 levels, up 0.3 per cent. That apart, the Nifty Realty index (up 2 per cent) and the Nifty Media index (up 1.3 per cent) were the other gainers on the NSE.

=============================================================== Pre-open session (updated at 9:10 AM): LIVE market updates: The frontline indices settled in the posititve territory in the pre-open session, indicating a higher start to the last trading session of the week.

The BSE Sensex ended the pre-market session at 61,044.5 levels, up 121 points. The Nifty50, on the other hand, was at 18,231, up 53 points. ================================================================= (Updated at 8:15 AM) LIVE market updates: Mixed global cues and Q2 results will keep the indices volatile on Friday. Besides, Brent crude prices at over 3-year high, at $86.1 per barrel, along with choppy bond yields may cap upside. At 8:10 AM, SGX Nifty was at 18,264 levels, up 18 points. Earnings today/Stocks to watch Reliance Industries, Chennai Petro, Crompton Greaves, Federal Bank, HDFC Life, Hindustan Zinc, Inox Leisure, Jubilant Pharma, Kajaria Ceramics, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts, PVR, Tata Consumer, Tata Elxsi, and Yes Bank are some of the other prominent companies scheduled to announce September quarter numbers. That apart, LIC Housing Finance, JSW Steel, and Zee Entertainment will also be in investor radar Global cues Overnight in US, the S&P 500 ended at record high, even as Dow and Nasdaq ended on a flat note. In Asian, barring Nikkei had gained 0.6 per cent, and the Straits Times was up 0.4 per cent. The Kospi and S&P/ASX 200 were more of less unmoved in early trade.

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