Sensex gains nearly 100 points; Nifty reclaims 8,500

Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, Dr Reddys Lab and HUL are the top gainers

Benchmark indices are trading higher helped by the gains in pharmaceuticals, FMCG, select banks and capital goods stocks while the losses in information technology and select auto stocks have kept the gains limited at higher levels.
 
At 12:50PM, the 30-share Sensex was up 90 points at 28,049 and the 50-share Nifty was up 33 points at 8,525.  
 
 In the broader market, both the BSE Midcap index, up 0.9% and Smallcap index, up 1.4% have performed better than the front-liners. Market breadth in BSE is positive with 1,660 advances against 727 declines.    
 
 Buzzing Stocks
 
8 out of the 12 sectoral indices of BSE are in green. BSE Healthcare index up 1.6% is the top gainer followed by BSE FMCG and Capital Goods indices up nearly 0.7% and 0.5% each.
 
Sun Pharma is among the top gainers and has gained around 3.5%. ahead of record date set for the merger with Ranbaxy.  Dr Reddys Lab has gained 1.4%. Dr Reddys Lab has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire a select portfolio of the established products business of UCB in the territories of India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
 
Bharti Airtel has gained around 2%.  Bharti Airtel has informed BSE that Mr. Mukesh Bhavnani, Group General Counsel & Company Secretary has resigned from the Company to pursue an assignment outside of the Company.
 
 From the FMCG pack, ITC and HUL have gained around 0.7% and 1% each.
 
Capital goods major L&T has gained 0.6%. The construction arm of L&T has won orders worth Rs 3,343 crores across various business segments in March 2015 according to company’s release to BSE.
 
M&M is trading higher by 0.5%. M&M has announced its total auto sales numbers at 45,212 units during March 2015 as against 51,636 units during March 2014.
 
Maruti Suzuki today reported a marginal 1.6% decline in its total sales for March at 1,11,555 units as against 1,13,350 units in the same month a year ago. The stock is trading lower by around 2%.
 
Metal stocks are trading mixed. Tata Steel is up 0.3%, Hindalco is up 1.5% and Sesa Sterlite has shed around 0.6%. Tata Steel has divested its entire stake in Lanka Special Steels Limited to E. B. Creasy & Company for a total consideration of around Rs 20.4 crore in an all cash deal.