Markets open firm, Sensex up 146 points

The Indian markets opened on a firm note following  positive global cues. The BSE Sensex opened at 16,360, up 146 points and the Nifty is at 4,903, up 37 points.

Gains were led by metals and bank shares which were beaten down last week. SBI and HDFC Bank were up over 1% each while ICICI Bank gained 0.5%. In the metal space, Tata Steel and Jindal Steel were up over 1% each while Hindalco rose 0.6% and Sterlite Industries was up 0.5%.

However, release of October IIP numbers later in the day , monthly inflation data Wednesday and RBI’s monetary policy review scheduled Friday will keep them volatile during the week. Profit-booking in a truncated trading week saw benchmark Sensex closing 4 per cent down last week.

The US stock markets had rallied on Friday with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending up 1.55 per cent, the S&P 500 index rose by 1.69 per cent and Nasdaq Composite index was up 1.94 per cent.

Asian share markets rose on Monday, as investors welcomed Europe's latest plan to fix the region's debt crisis with the introduction of tougher fiscal rules for the 17-member euro zone countries. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average rose 1.3 per cent, South Korea's Kospi Composite added 1 per cent and New Zealand's NZX-50 was up 0.1 per cent.

Back home, technical analysts expect the Nifty to seek support around 4,835 – 4,820, and face resistance around 4,895 – 4,915. At 720 am Indian Standard Time, the SGX Nifty was trading at 4922, up 39 points.