Sensex, Nifty advance in early trade

Key indices were trading higher on select buying in Index stocks. At 9:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 152.50 points or 0.37% at 41,604.85. The Nifty 50 index was up 37.30 points or 0.31% at 12,253.20.

The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.36%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.41%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 579 shares rose and 187 shares fell. A total of 47 shares were unchanged.

Among stocks, Housing Development Finance Corporation was up 0.13%. Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) said the company has completed the acquisition of 50.80% shares of Apollo Hospitals Group in Apollo Munich Health Insurance Company for Rs 1,485 crore. It also acquired 0.36% stake in Apollo Hospitals held by employees for Rs 10.67 crore. Apollo Munich has been renamed to HDFC ERGO Health Insurance, which will operate as a subsidiary of HDFC.

Infosys rose 1.64%. IT major Infosys will announce its Q3 result today, 10 January 2020.

Tata Consultancy Services advanced 0.72%. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) said the company has expanded its partnership with Vipps AS, Norway's leading player in the payments and identification segment, to leverage TCS' Machine First' Delivery Model (MFDM) and cloud services to accelerate the latter's growth and digital journey.

Delta Corp jumped 3.75%. Delta Corp said the company's subsidiary in Nepal has been issued a license for operating a casino in Nepal. The operations of the casino at the Marriot Hotel in Kathmandu are expected to commence soon.

Sterlite Technologies surged 3.14%. Sterlite Technologies (STL) said Sterlite Global Venture (Mauritius) a wholly owned subsidiary of STL, has entered into definitive agreements to acquire 12.8% stake (on issued and outstanding basis) in ASOCS, a vRAN technology company based out of Israel.

GMR Infrastructure gained 1.04%. GMR Infrastructure (GMR) said GMR Hyderabad Aerotropolis (GHAL), a subsidiary of GMR Hyderabad International Airport (GHIAL), has formed a joint venture with ESR Hyderabad 1 Pte (ESR), a subsidiary of the Hong Kong based ESR Cayman, to develop a 66-acre logistics and industrial park at the Hyderabad airport city. ESR and GMR entered into a definitive agreement with an equity interest of 70% and 30%, respectively, in the special purpose vehicle named GMR Logistics Park.

Overseas, most Asian stocks were trading higher on Friday following the easing of US-Iran tensions, and after US stocks shot to record highs.

In US, stocks swept to record highs once again on Thursday as investors focused on progress on the trade pact with China due to be signed next week and amid an easing of concerns about war in the Middle East.

In economic data, the number of Americans who applied for unemployment benefits fell in early 2020 for the fourth week in a row, putting new jobless claims back near the lowest level in about 50 years. Initial jobless claims declined by 9,000 to 214,000 in the seven days ended 4 Jan 2020.

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