Markets struggle to extend gains; F&O expiry weighs

Markets traded range bound with a positive bias this Wednesday as China’s cash crunch eased and German consumer confidence climbed.

Trading was, however, volatile ahead of July derivative contracts expiry this Thursday.

At 2:25PM, the 30-share Sensex rose 13 points at 18,644 and the 50-share Nifty gained 8 points at 5,617 levels.

Shares also rose after market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India eased overseas investor norms for investing Indian equities.

With regard to the foreign investors, SEBI's board approved making their registration and compliance requirements much simpler and easier, especially for government entities and large investors like insurers, asset management companies and university funds from abroad.

Globally, the People’s Bank of China has provided financing to some financial institutions to stabilize interbank lending rates and will use short-term liquidity operations and existing loan-facility tools to ensure steady markets, according to a statement yesterday.

Asian stocks ended mixed with Nikkei falling 1% to 12,834, Singapore Straits Times gained 0.4% to 3,104, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2.4% to 20,338 while China’s Shanghai Composite index was down 0.4% at 1,951.

Meanwhile, German consumer confidence will rise to 6.8 next month from 6.5 in June, Nuremberg-based research company GfK SE said today. That would be the highest since September 2007.

In Europe, France’s CAC gained 1.5% to 3,705, Germany’s DAX added 1.3% to 7,912 and UK’s FTSE was up 1% at 6,160.

Back home, the key sectoral losers included autos, consumer durables, healthcare while IT, FMCG,, realty PSU, power rose on the BSE.

The gainers included counters such as TCS rising 2.6%, NTPC and GAIL were up 2.5% each, Hero MotoCorp rose 1.3%, ITC added 1.2% while ICICI Bank was up 1% on the BSE.

The laggards were Bharti Airtel falling 5%, M&M was down 3.6%, Tata Motors fell 3%, Hindalco Industries fell 1% on the BSE.

The broader markets traded mixed with mid-caps falling 0.2 per cent and small-caps gaining 0.2 per cent on the BSE.

The market breadth was negative. Out of 2,286 stocks traded so far, 1,165 stocks dropped while 973 advanced on the BSE.