Markets remain volatile in a narrow range

BSE Power, Oil & Gas, PSU, IT, Capital Goods and Realty indices have gained by 1% each

Benchmark indices continue to remain volatile in a narrow range with Sensex and Nifty swinging between negative and positive zone.

By 1030 AM, Sensex was up by 10 points at 18,639, and the Nifty up 8 points at 5,617 levels.

Most Asian shares turned around a four-day losing streak and rose on Wednesday as investors took comfort from US data underscoring an American recovery and assurances from China's central bank that it will offer funds to banks if needed.

But fears of a credit crunch and slower loan growth continued to fuel selling of Chinese banking shares in Shanghai. Although China's short-term borrowing rates eased for a fourth day, they remained at elevated levels.

Back home, the rupee today fell by 12 paise to 59.78 against the dollar in early trade on the Interbank Foreign Exchange market on increased demand for the US currency from importers.

The RBI was spotted selling dollars via state-run banks starting when the rupee breached above 59.90 levels, five dealers told Reuters.

On the sectoral front, BSE Power, Oil & Gas, PSU, IT, Capital Goods and Realty indices have gained by 1% each. However, BSE Auto index has declined by nearly 1%.

The main gainers on the Sensex at this hour include GAIL, NTPC, Tata Power, RIL, BHEL, Sterlite, L&T, ICICI Bank and TCS, all gaining between 1-2%.

On the losing side, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, JSPL and HDFC have declined between 1-4%.

Bajaj Auto is trading lower after the company said production at the company’s Chakan plant has been affected due to a labor strike.

Among other shares, Gitanjali Gems is locked in lower circuit for third straight day, down 10% at Rs 292 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Emami has dipped 6% to Rs 430 in early morning deals on BSE after the stock was quoted ex-bonus and ex-dividend today.

Shares of Tech Mahindra and Mahindra Satyam are trading higher by over 2% each, extending their past three days gain, ahead of merger.

Mahindra Satyam has rallied 3.4% to Rs 120, while Tech Mahindra is up 2.4% at Rs 1,034 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The market breadth in BSE remains marginally positive with 838 shares advancing and 659 shares declining.