Markets in consolidation gear

The markets have been consolidating in the last one hour after touching an intra-day high of 16,897 in early-morning trades. The Sensex is up by 106 points at 16,848 and the Nifty is precariously poised at the 5000 mark, up 24 points.

HDFC was the top gainer on the BSE, gaining 2.84% at 2,533.05. Tata Motors rose by 2.78% to Rs 598.95 and  Hero Honda gained by 2.38% at Rs 1678.60.

Tata Power, ITC, Hindustan Unilever, Maruti and Infosys gained between 1-2% each, while M&M, NTPC, SBI and BHEL moved up by upto 1% each.

On the losing side, Bharti Airtel slipped further in the last one hour and is now trading 2.58% down at Rs 431.20. Sterlite has decline dby 2.24% to Rs 744.95, while Hindalco has shed 1.60% and is now tradi ng at Rs 135.50.

The market breadth remains positive, with 59.29% of the the traded scrips in the green. Out of 2,584 stocks traded during the day, there are 1,532 advancing stocks and 954 declining ones.