Markets trade strong, Sensex up 170pts

Markets are trading strong in morning trades after having opened on a soft note. The BSE Sensex is at 16,976, up 170 points and the Nifty opened at 5,091, up 52 points.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 45.79 points, or 0.38 per cent, to 12,143.62. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index was off 0.09 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 1,256.99.

In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.3 per cent on Wednesday, while the Nikkei stock average opened up 0.6 per cent, with traders expecting the market to stick to recent ranges.

Back home, the Nifty is likely to face resistance around 5,060 – 5,070, analysts say, while it may seek support around 5,020 – 5,000 levels. At 715 am Indian Standard Time, the SGX Nifty was trading at 5060, up 28 points.

Among the sectoral indices, BSE Realty, Auto and Bankex indices are leading the gains, up 1% each.

Ashok Leyland, Exide Industries, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Motors, up 1-2% each, are the prominent gainers from the Auto space.

Federal Bank, Bank of India, Yes Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank, up 1-2% each, are the gainers among the financials.

On the Sensex, JP Associates, Maruti Suzuki, DLF, Hindalco Industries and SBI are the prominent gainers, up 1-2% each.

Bharti Airtel, Coal India, Sterlite Industries, Sun Pharma Industries and NTPC, down marginally, are the losers from the pack.

The overall market breadth is positive as 1,071 stocks are advancing against 461 declining ones, on the BSE.