Shares pare early gains, Nifty trades at 14,800

The main indices pared gains in morning trade as selling emerged at higher levels. The Nifty hovered at 14,800 mark. Pharma and IT shares corrected while banks and metal stocks were in demand.

At 10:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 276.09 points or 0.55% at 50,077.19. The Nifty 50 index was up 80.35 points or 0.55% at 14,801.45.

Upbeat Asian stocks boosted sentiment after the US Federal Reserve kept monetary policy and rates unchanged and projected a rapid jump in US economic growth.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.2% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index was gained 0.24%.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was positive. On the BSE, 1383 shares rose and 1060 shares fell. A total of 122 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 121,158,726 with 2,680,220 deaths. India reported 252,364 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 159,216 deaths while 110,63,025 patients have been discharged, according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index jumped 496 points or 1.45% to 34,726.05, snapping its four day losing streak. The index saw bargain hunting after dropping 4.7% in four consecutive sessions.

Bank of Baroda (up 2.67%), Federal Bank (up 2.24%), RBL Bank (up 2.1%), IndusInd Bank (up 1.87%), SBI (up 1.75%), ICICI Bank (up 1.72%), Axis Bank (up 1.52%), HDFC Bank (up 1.35%), and IDFC First Bank (up 1.15%) were top gainers in Bank Nifty.

Punjab National Bank (PNB) rose 1.31% after the bank said that it incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary PNB Cards & Services on 16 March 2021. The subsidiary has been incorporated to undertake the non-financial support services related to credit card business of the bank. The authorized capital of PNB Cards & Services is Rs 25 crore (divided into 2.50 crore equity shares of Rs 10 each) and the paid-up capital is Rs 15 crore (divided into 1.50 crore equity shares of Rs 10 each).

Stocks in Spotlight:

HFCL rose 1.68% after the company said it bagged a Rs 221 crore order from Uttar Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation for Kanpur metro and Agra metro projects. Under these projects, the company will be setting up telecommunication systems for 32.4 kms of Kanpur metro and 14 kms of Agra metro and the same would be completed in next 33 months.

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