Shares hold firm at higher levels; IT shares decline

Key equity indices were trading near day's high in morning trade. At 10:35 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 178.19 points or 0.46% at 39,234.84. The Nifty 50 index was up 35.85 points or 0.31% at 11,749.05. Positive Asian cues boosted investors sentiment.

Among secondary barometers, the BSE Mid-Cap index and the BSE Small-Cap index were up by 0.50% each.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On BSE, 1207 shares rose and 741 shares fell. A total of 126 shares were unchanged.

Most IT shares declined. Hexaware Technologies (down 1.45%), Tech Mahindra (down 1.17%), TCS (down 0.84%), MphasiS (down 0.68%), Wipro (down 0.67%) and MindTree (down 0.07%), edged lower. Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.43%), Persistent Systems (up 0.96%) and HCL Technologies (up 1.74%), edged higher.

Infosys was down 0.69%. EdgeVerve Systems, a subsidiary of Infosys, has been selected by Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait to automate the bank's operational processes using the AssistEdge RPA platform. Ahli United Bank is one of the pioneering banks in Kuwait to innovate its banking operations using RPA. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 2 April 2019.

Metal shares were in demand. Steel Authority of India (up 2.4%), Tata Steel (up 2.09%), National Aluminium Company (up 1.63%), JSW Steel (up 1.46%), Hindustan Zinc (up 1.42%), Vedanta (up 1.39%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 0.89%), NMDC (up 0.62%), Hindustan Copper (up 0.3%) and Hindalco Industries (up 0.07%), edged higher.

Overseas, Asian shares traded higher on Wednesday following a report that said the US and China are closer to reaching a trade agreement.

The US and China are set to resume trade negotiations in Washington on Wednesday, following last week's talks in Beijing. Ahead of the meeting, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the two countries "expect to make more headway" in this week's talks. Both economic powerhouses are closer to reaching a deal, according to media reports.

In US, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed with small gains on Tuesday, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended in the red.

In economic reports, a report on long-lasting factory goods, or durable goods, in February showed a 1.6% decline, the Commerce Department said.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News