Sensex erases early gains, still up by 36 points

The BSE 30-stock index heavyweight Reliance Industries edged higher after the company reported a surge in net profit on a sequential basis in the second quarter ended September on the back of improvement in gross refining margin.

The market sentiment was also boosted by provisional data showing that foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers yesterday. FIIs bought shares worth a net Rs 20.16 crore yesterday per the data from the stock exchanges.

The BSE Sensex resumed higher at 18,784.75 and shot up further to 18,801.10, but declined afterwards to a low of 18,743.59 before quoting at 18,749.84 at 1025hrs - up 36.29 points or 0.19 per cent from its last close.

The NSE 50-share Nifty was also up 11.20 points or 0.20 per cent to 5,698.45.

Major gainers were Bharti Airtel (1.60 pc), Maruti (1.36 pc), TCS (1.31 pc), HDFC (1.03 pc), Tata Power (0.92 pc) and BHEL (0.60 pc).

Asian shares were up in the early trade after some strong earnings data from the US.

Key indices in China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan gained up to 0.94 per cent.