Markets in consolidation mode ahead of March F&O expiry

Benchmark indices were in consolidated mode in the afternoon trade with the Nifty holding the 9100-mark led by banking stocks. While strong foreign investments lifted the sentiment, broader gains were capped ahead of March F&O series expiry.
 
Arun Jaitley also tabled GST bills in Lok Sabha for consideration today. Speaking in the Lower House, the FM said GST will ensure free movement of goods across the country. He also added that cess on luxury, sin goods will be used for GST compensation.
 
At 12:37 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 29,494, up 85 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,125, up 25 points.

 

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap gained 0.3%, while the S&P BSE Smallcap added 0.5%.The market breadth remained narrow as 1,275 shares advanced against a decline of 1,019 shares, while 168 shares were unchanged.
 
Meanwhile, the rupee hit its strongest level against the dollar in nearly 1-1/2 years. Foreign investors have bought a net $6.91 billion in debt and equities so far this month on hopes of an improving economy.
 
Banking stocks were in focus with the Nifty Bank index hitting a record high level of 21,384. The rally in the index was helped by surge in State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank. Also, the Nifty PSU bank has gained the most in this week.

 
Bharti Infratel rose as much as 7% to be the top gainer on Nifty after Bharti Airtel completed a transfer of 11.32% stake in its telecom tower unit to Nettle Infra Investments
 
Among other gainers, Vadilal Industries touched a record high of Rs 968, up over 5% post strong growth outlook for the summer. The stock price has already rallied nearly 36% this month.
 
L&T also gained 1.5% intraday after the company’s construction arm won an order worth Rs 2,400 crore.
                                                                                      
SBI, Asian Paints, ICICI Bank and L&T were top gainers on BSE Sensex, while Sun Pharma, M&M and GAIL were the top losers.

 
Globally, Asian shares inched ahead on Wednesday while the dollar and commodities held gains as investors shook off disappointment about US President Donald Trump's failed healthcare bill and focused on an improving outlook for global growth.
 
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged up 0.2% and back toward recent 21-month peaks while Japan's Nikkei added 0.1%, with a number of ex-dividend stocks cutting around 130 points from the index.
 
The Dow snapped an eight-day losing streak, its longest run of losses since 2011, in part as a survey showed consumer confidence surged to a more than 16-year high.