Markets have a firm closing; Sensex gains more than 100 points

The markets have ended on a firm footing, thanks to gains in FMCG and metal stocks.

The Sensex ended at 27,780, higher by 135 points and the Nifty ended at 8,368, up 50 points (provisional close).

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(Updated at 15.10pm)


Markets have gained momentum in the last half an hour of trading after Greece decided to consider the latest European Union proposal. The rally in the FMCG and healthcare shares is contributing the most to the rise on the benchmark, Sensex.

At 3:10PM, the Sensex was trading at 27,801 levels up 147 points while the Nifty was up 56 points at 8,374 levels.

Lupin, Coal India, Sun Pharma, Tata Steel and HUL are the top 5 gainers on the BSE up between 2-3%.

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(updated at 2:30 PM)

Markets have turned choppy after giving up their initial gains and are trading extremely flat led by a rally in FMCG, pharma, consumer durables and metal stocks.  Investors have put up a cautious foot forward on Greece woes, which is highly likely to default on its payment to International Monetary Fund (IMF) that is due today.

At 2:30PM, the Sensex was flat at 27,647 levels while the 50-share Nifty was up 11 points at 8,329 levels.

The broader markets are, however, outperforming their larger peers with BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap indices up by 1.05% and 0.8%, respectively. Market breadth is strong with 1,507 gainers and 883 losers on the BSE.

On the currency front, the Indian rupee is quoting at 63.76, appreciating by 8 paise on dollar sales by exporters.

Meanwhile, Asians shares are trading higher but investors are watchful of the developments in the Euro zone.

SECTORS & STOCKS

On the sectoral front, BSE Consumer Durables index has gained over 2%, followed by BSE FMCG and BSE Healthcare indices, both up by 1.6%. BSE Information Technology, BSE Auto and Bankex have lost between 0.4-0.7% each.

The appreciation in the Indian currency has impacted the IT shares, which have lost sheen on the Sensex.  TCS, Wipro and Infosys have dropped between 0.4-1.6% each on the Sensex.

Financial shares are on the edge over Greek debt crisis. ICICI Bank has dipped over 2% and is the biggest loser on the Sensex. Axis Bank and HDFC twins are down between 0.2-1.3% each while SBI has gained 0.5%.

Shares of fast moving consumer goods companies (FMCG) have gained in an otherwise flat market. HUL is eyeing newer product categories as it looks to reach a wider section of people as part of its new strategy aimed at "serving many Indias". The stock is up by 1.8% while ITC has gained 1.2% on the Sensex.

Among other FMCG shares, United Breweries, Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL), Emami, Marico, Britannia Industries, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare, Colgate Palmolive (India), Hindustan Unilever and Jubilant FoodWorks were up between 1%-6%.

Sun Pharma has gained over 2% after a foreign brokerage houses said the Ranbaxy has hiked the drug prices of its unit.

Lupin has surged over 2.5% on reports that it is eyeing to enter new product segments, therapies and geographies via acquisitions.

Coal India has registered 2.7% gains on the Sensex after Morgan-Stanley maintained outperform rating on the stock with a target price of Rs 530 per share.

Bharti Airtel has moved up a position in global rankings to become the third largest mobile operator in the world, in terms of subscribers. The stock has rallied over 1.5% on the Sensex.