Markets open higher tracking positive global cues

The Sensex opened higher by 61 points at 20,748 mark and the Nifty gained by 19 points at 6,180 levels.

Benchmark indices have turned volatile with positive bias after making a higher opening tracking positive global cues. By 9:30, the Sensex was higher by 49 points at 20,742 mark and the Nifty gained by 16 points at 6,178 levels.

US stocks ended higher Monday, with the S&P snapping a three-day losing streak. European shares too ended well in the green as overall sentiment in global markets got a leg-up from positive macro data emanating from both the US and the Eurozone.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 105.84 points or 0.64 percent, to end at 16,530.94. The S&P 500 gained 11.11 points or 0.61 percent, to finish at 1,837.88. The Nasdaq Composite added 39.501 points or 0.96 percent, to close at 4,153.182.

US trade deficit shrank to a 4-year low of $34.3 billion for November, way below what the street was expecting, helped by a 1 percent rise in exports to $194.9 billion.

Asian markets got a hand up on Wednesday after strong trade data boosted expectations for US growth while a lessening of sovereign strains in Europe lifted stocks there to the highest since 2008.

Japan's Nikkei led the way with a rise of 1.1%, though some other regional markets remain out of favour as funds flock to assets in the western world.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 567.02 crore on Tuesday as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.

Back home, BSE Realty, Consumer Durables and Power indices are up by nearly 1% each followed by counters like Banks, Capital Goods, Oil & Gas, Metal, Auto and IT, all gaining marginally.

The main gainers on the Sensex at this hour include Hindalco, Coal India, Sun Pharma, Tata Power, NTPC, ICICI Bank, RIL and Bajaj Auto.

On the losing side, GAIL, Wipro, Tata Steel, Sesa Sterlite and Axis Bank have declined by 1% each.

The broader markets are outperforming the benchmark indices- BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up by 0.3%.

The market breadth in BSE remains positive with 624 shares advancing and 259 shares declining.