 "Nifty holds 7,600, Midcaps up 0.5%; auto shares weak")
Markets have recovered from the choppy session and are trading firm led by metal shares. Further, India's wholesale prices fell for a 13th straight month in November, declining an annual 1.99%, mainly on tumbling oil prices, government data showed on Monday.
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The top gainers from the Sensex pack are HUL, Coal India, Tata Steel, BHEL and Dr Reddy’s Labs.
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Updated at 11:40 am
Benchmark indices have recovered from lower levels and are trading in a narrow range with positive bias led by select metal and pharma shares.
However, the upside is capped due to selling among auto shares after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday ordered immediate ban on registration of diesel-run cars in the national capital.
At 11:40am, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 22 points at 25,067 and the Nifty50 was up 14 points at 7,625.
The broader markets are outperforming- BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices are up 0.3%-0.5%.
In the currency front, the rupee again breached the 67-mark by depreciating 18 paise to 67.06 against the dollar in early trade today at the Interbank Foreign Exchange, mainly on strong demand for the American unit from importers and some banks amid a lower opening of the domestic equity market.
Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 253.73 crore on Friday as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.
The government will unveil the data on Wholesale Price Index for November today. Post market hours, Consumer Price Index for November will also be announced today.
In the overseas market, Asian equities edged lower as investors remain focused on a decision from the US Federal Reserve after a monetary policy review this week. The Fed is widely expected to raise the federal funds rate by 25 basis points after the conclusion of a two-day monetary policy meeting on 15-16 December 2015.
Back home, select autio shares are trading lower after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Friday has ordered immediate ban on registration of diesel-run cars in the national capital. The order further states that there won’t be any renewal of registration of vehicles that are older than 10 years in Delhi. Tata Motors, M&M, Ashok Leyland and Eicher Motors are down 1%-3%.
Shares of sugar companies have surged by up to 5% on the bourses after the government plans to increase the cess on sugar by almost Rs 100 per quintal to fund its ambitious programme of paying Rs 4.50 per quintal directly into the bank accounts of growers.
Simbhaoli Sugars, Bajaj Hindusthan, Shree Renuka Sugars, Balrampur Chini Mills, Dhampur Sugar Mills and EID Parry have gained between 2%-5%.
Shares of Natco Pharma were up over 1% on the Bombay Stock Exchange after the company alongwith Alvogen which had filed for generic versions of Tamilflu oral capsules (oseltamivir phosphate) in dosages of 30mg, 45mg and 75mg have settled the patent infringement suit filed by Gilead Sciences, Inc., Hoffmann-La Roche Inc., F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. and Genentech, Inc., in New Jersey District Court.
Shares of Bhushan Steel have dropped 3.6% to Rs 43.55 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) after the National Green Tribunal (NGT) ordered the closure of Bhushan Steel’s facility in Sahibabad industrial area for 4 weeks.
