Markets flat; Infosys down 3%

ITC, ICICI Bank, Tata Motors among the top gainers

Markets surrendered most of its opening hour gains as weakness in IT heavyweights and HDFC capped gains in banks and RIL.

At 1020 hrs, the Sensex was up three points at 22,487 and the Nifty was up by a point at 6,734.

In broader markets, smallcap index was up 0.4% and the midcap index gained nearly 0.2%, both outperforming the BSE benchmark index.

IT index down nearly 2% along with Health Care, Realty and Capital Goods down 0.2-0.4% were the only indices in red.

Other than IT scrips, HDFC, Dr Reddys Lab, Cipla, L&T and NTPC down 0.5-0.9% were the major losers.

In individual names, Jubilant FoodWorks was up 2% at Rs 1,050 after the RBI said that foreign institutional investors would be able to purchase up to 55% of the paid-up capital in the company.

Crompton Greaves has rallied nearly 6% to Rs 188, its highest level since July 2011 on the BSE, on media reports that Hitachi, the Japanese maker of industrial power equipment and electronic goods, has emerged as the front-runner to buy the promoter's stake in the power transmission and distribution company promoted by Gautam Thapar.
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(Updated ta 1030 hrs)
Markets edged higher after a flat start with the Sensex gaining 37 points at 22,522 and the Nifty adding 10 points at 6,743.

The broader markets gained, with both mid and smallcap indices up 0.4% each in early trades.

Sectors & Stocks

Bankex, Power, Oil & Gas, Metal, Consumer Durables, and FMCG indices, up 0.5-0.7% each, were the sectoral gainers.

IT and Teck indices, down 0.5-1%, were the only indices in red.

IT heavyweights Infosys and TCS led the losers list, down 1-2%.

HDFC, L&T, Cipla and Bajaj Auto down 0.2-0.8% were the only other scrips in the red among Sensex-30.

Among stocks in the green, Tata Steel, SBI, Maruti Suzuki and Gail India up 1% each were the top gainers in opening deals.

HUL, Axis Bank, RIL, Sesa Sterlite, ITC and Sun Pharma up 0.8-0.9% were the other notable movers.

Index movers ICICI Bank, ONGC and Tata Motors added 0.5% each.

The market breadth was positive on BSE; 889 stocks advanced while 480 stocks declined.

Global Markets

Asian markets were trading firm after China's GDP in the first quarter (Jan-Mar) of 2014 was better-than-expected at 7.4%. The Nikkei continued to rebound from its recent lows and was up over 2% while Straits Times was up 0.2%. Shares in Hong Kong also firmed up 0.4% after the slide yesterday while Shanghai Composite was trading flat.

US stocks ended higher on Tuesday led by major corporates such as Coca- Cola global pharma giant Johnson & Johnson. The Dow Jones ended up 0.6% at 16,262.56, S&P 500 gained 0.7% and the tech-laden Nasdaq ended up 0.3%.