Sensex, Nifty continue trading cautiously; broader markets outperform

Reliance, M&M, Sun Pharma and Adani Ports gained the most on BSE Sensex

Benchmark indices opened flat on Wednesday in absence of major cues as Wall Street remained shut on account of public holiday.  Street was on edge as tensions after North Korea fired a missile into Japanese waters kept the global markets subdued.

 

Investors also awaited minutes of the Fed's June meeting to gauge how committed it was to hiking rates this year.

 

North Korea said it had conducted a test of a newly developed intercontinental ballistic missile that can carry a large and heavy nuclear warhead. South Korean and US troops fired missiles into the waters off South Korea to show their deep strike precision capability.

 

At 11:35 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,235, up 25 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,627, up 13 points.

 

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and S&P BSE Smallcap index gained 0.6% and 0.8% respectively.

"The internal trendline that pierces through 9,640, also discussed yesterday, shall continue to be a challenge, and to this end, dips to 9,580 should be a convenient entry. And until then, volatility should be the order of the day. Alternatively, direct rise above 9,650 could see some short covering, but a directional upside is less favoured," said Geojit Financial Services in a note.

 

Buzzing Stocks

M&M, Reliance, Sun Pharma and Tata Steel gained the most on BSE Sensex while Bharti Airtel, Wipro, HDFC and Infosys lost the most on the index.

 

Mahindra & Mahindra gained 2.5% after it reduced prices of its utility vehicles and SUVs by up to 6.9% on an average to pass on the GST benefit to customers. 

Ultratech Cement advanced 0.7% after it cut cement prices by up to 3%.

Infosys lost 0.7% after media reports that hikes have been only in the range of 5-11% and it would be put into effect from July 1.

Shares of Texmaco Rail, an Adventz Group firm, jumped over 11% intra-day after the group signed a $2-billion-plus agreement with Israel's Lesico Group to collaborate in light rail transit (LRT) projects in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. 

Global Markets

 

Asian share markets got off to a subdued start on Wednesday as simmering tensions on the Korean peninsula supported safe-harbors including the yen and gold.

 

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was off 0.01%, having shed 0.6 %on Tuesday when North Korea fired a missile into Japanese waters.

 

Japan's Nikkei eased 0.1%, as did South Korea's main index.

 

A holiday in the United States and a dearth of major data kept activity muted across Asia, though minutes of the Federal Reserve's last meeting due later in the day could provide some impetus.