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At 11:25 hours, the 30-share Sensex was up 66 points at 20,919, while the Nifty-50 had increased by 16 points at 6,216.
Broader markets showed a mix performance, with the BSE Mid-cap and Small-cap increasing by 0.14% and 0.39% respectively, compared to Sensex's gain of 0.35%.
At 61.90, the rupee was up by 0.04 points compared to Tuesday's close of 61.94 versus the dollar. Demand for the rupee to meet month-end export/import requirements, is the primary reason for this according to dealers.
Breadth of the market was positive, with 1124 advances, 928 declines, and 110 scrips remaining unchanged.
Asian Markets
Major Asian indices remain mixed on Wednesday morning as concerns over opaque policy moves in China kept investors on edge. Singapore's Straits Times was down by 0.40% at 3,091, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng was up 40 points at 22,357.
Japan's Nikkei declined by 0.26%, or 36 points, to 15,012 from a three week high of 15,071 it touched yesterday. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan moved ahead by 0.28%.
Sectors and Stocks
Amongst the various sectors, the S&P BSE Capital Goods index was leading the list of gainers, increasing by 1.2%. Index constituent ABB increased by more than 7% to touch a 52-week high of Rs. 730, while Siemens and Welspun Corp also gained by 2-5% each.
Other sectors that remained in the green were IT, FMCG, Healthcare, Consumer Durables, Power and Bankex, each making gains of 0.1-0.8%.
On the other hand, the Metal index was down almost 1.5% to hit a four-month low amidst concerns of slowdown in China. The metal index has decreased by almost 5% in the last six trading sessions, compared to 1.3% rise in the Sensex. All index constituents except Jindal Steel and Hindalco were trading in the red.
GAIL was the biggest gainer in the Sensex, increasing by more than 2%. Sun Pharma, Dr. Reddy's, State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Wipro also gained by 1.0-1.5% each.
Sesa Sterlite extended yesterday's fall to decline by more than 2% today as well. NTPC, Coal India, and Tata Steel also decreased by 1.0-1.5% each as metal companies continued their struggle.
Dr Reddy’s Laboratories has moved higher by nearly 2% at Rs 2,828, also its record high on the NSE, after the company said it has launched Sumatriptan Injection USP in the US.
State Bank of India (SBI) is trading higher by 1% at Rs 1,524 after the country’s largest public sector lender said that its board schedule to meet next week to consider interim dividend to shareholders of the company.
Amongst other shares, Sanofi India were up nearly 2% at Rs 2,686 after the company reported robust earnings with net profit rising over 100% during the fourth quarter ended December 2013. The results were announced on late Tuesday.
