The S&P BSE benchmark Sensex trimmed its initial gains today but was still quoted higher by 16 points in late morning deals on buying in realty, consumer durable, FMCG and metal sectors despite selling in IT, power and auto sectors.
The BSE-30 share index Sensex opened higher at 19,865.99 and firmed up further to 19,900.68 on initial buying.
However, it declined afterwards to 19,775.29 in view of weak Asian cues before quoting 19,819.99 points at 1025 hours.
It still showed a gain of 15.96 points or 0.08 per cent from its last close.
The NSE 50-share barometer Nifty also inched up by 1.50 points or 0.03 per cent to 5,851.70 at 1025 hours.
Major gainers were Cipla (1.68 per cent), Coal India (1.43 per cent), HUL (1.31 per cent), SBI (1.29 per cent), Tata Power (1.19 per cent) and Dr Reddy's Lab (1.16 per cent).
However, HDFC dropped by 2.29 per cent followed by M&M 1.05 (per cent), HDFC bank (1.03 per cent) and Sun Pharma (0.98 per cent).
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 318.05 crore yesterday, as per provisional data from the stock exchanges.
Most Asian stocks fell in their early trade amid prospects that the Federal Reserve will announce today whether it intends to pare back economic stimulus.
Key benchmark indices in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Indonesia shed by 0.07 to 0.72 per cent, while indices in Singapore and Japan rose by 0.58 to 1.85 per cent.
