Markets have a quiet start; Nifty above 8,350

BHEL, L&T, ICICI Bank and Maruti Suzuki are the prominent gainers on the BSE, while Tata Motors, ONGC and Wipro drag

The benchmark indices have got off to a stable start this morning post the rout witnessed in the previous session.

At 9.40am, the Sensex was at 27,579, higher by 18 points and Nifty was at 8,367, up 6 points. In the broader markets, the midcap index has gained 0.3% at 11,037 and the smallcap index has gained 0.6% at 11,616.

The market breadth is strong. Out of 1,589 stocks traded on the BSE, there are 1,070 advancing stocks as against 461 declines.

The Sensex had nosedived by more than 500 points in the previous session, spooked by fears of stiffer norms on participatory notes and rout on the Chinese bourses. But the finance minister's assurance to investors against any irrational action on the part of the government and the partial recovery seen in Asia seems to be aiding the return of stability back home, atleast in early trades.

Going ahead, the trend in Chinese equity markets and corporate earnings would dictate the direction of the markets. The upcoming July derivatives expiry later in the week would also add some volatility to the market proceedings.

Meanwhile, the US Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) begins its two day meeting today; the meeting will be closely followed by the market participants for signals on US rate hike amid the strengthening of US economic data.

RESULTS CALENDAR

In the banking sector, Bank of India, HDFC, Punjab National Bank and Union Bank(I) are expected to announce their quarterly results today. Other companies that are set to announce their numbers include Maruti Suzuki, J Kumar Infra, Tata Communications, Pidilite Industries and Dish TV.

RUPEE

The rupee has opened marginally higher by 5 paise at 64.11 per dollar on Tuesday against the previous close of 64.16. The US dollar fell nearly 1% against major world currencies.

GLOBAL MARKETS

Asian stocks fell to three-week lows on Tuesday as a deepening rout in Chinese stocks erased risk appetite - sending investors flocking to safe-haven instruments such as government bonds and the Japanese yen.'

On Tuesday, Japan’s Nikkei 225 is trading flat. The Shanghai continues to trade in a southward direction, with 1% losses, while the Jakarta and Kospi indices are also trading lower. However, the Hang Seng, Taiwan and SET indices are trading in the green.

Overnight, the Dow Jones had dropped 0.7% and Nasdaq fell 1%, while share indices in Frankfurt and Paris tumbled more than 2.5% each.

STOCKS IN FOCUS

The capital goods sector is having a good session of trade, with BHEL and L&T ranking among the major gainers on the BSE with gains of around 1% each. ICICI Bank, Maruti Suzuki and Dr Reddy's are the other significant gainers on the BSE.

Tech Mahindra has inched higher by 0.2% at Rs 520 after reporting a net profit of Rs 676 crore compared to Rs 472 crore in the previous quarter. The company's dollar revenue grew by 0.5% to $989 million (QoQ).

On the other hand, Tata Motors, ONGC and Wipro have weakened by around 1% each on the BSE.