Markets gain amid positive global cues; Sensex above 59,300, Nifty 50 over 17,670; IT stocks fall; Power Grid, NTPC, Axis Bank, SBI top bulls

4 Jan 2022 , 09:50 AM

Indian markets traded higher tracking positive global cues on Tuesday. The performance was driven by an upbeat in banking and oil & gas stocks. Also, investors reacted to the country’s manufacturing activity business. In the early deals, Sensex neared 59,500 and Nifty 50 topped over 17,715.

At around 09.49 AM, Sensex was trading at 59,325.71 up by 142.49 points or 0.24%. Nifty 50 traded at 17,670.75 above 45.05 points or 0.26%.

In terms of sectoral indices, on BSE, the Bankex and Oil & Gas index surged by over 235 points and 150 points. On the contrary, the IT index dipped nearly 160 points emerging as a top laggard.

Sensex bulls were – Power Grid, NTPC, Axis Bank, SBI, ICICI Bank, Reliance Industries, Bajaj Finance and Maruti Suzuki.

Sensex bears were – HCL Tech, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, Infosys, Bajaj Finserv and Sun Pharma.

On the economy front, the health of the Indian manufacturing industry improved further in December, with the growth of new work and production remaining sharp despite losing momentum. Companies continued with their stock-building initiatives, as evidenced by another robust upturn in buying levels. Business confidence strengthened, but the sentiment was again dampened by concerns surrounding supply-chain disruptions, COVID-19 and inflationary pressures.

At 55.5 in December, the seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) pointed to a robust improvement in overall operating conditions that were elevated by historical standards. This was despite the headline figure slipping from November’s ten-month high of 57.6.

Among other markets, Asian markets opened in the green led by the Japanese ‘Nikkei’ which reopened for trading after 3 days of holiday & was trading higher by over 1.5%. The Taiwan stock index continues to be Asia’s best as it hits fresh new all-time highs with hardware manufacturing in the best space coupled with a very strong demand for chips. Chinese stocks will also be in action as data suggests strong demand for commodities as demand returns to pre Covid levels.

Overnight, on Wall Street, US markets start the New Year with a bang as Dow Jones closes at all-time highs with Nasdaq closing higher by 187 points while Russell 2000 index also jumps 0ver 1.08%. Bond yields rise to close at 4-month highs near 1.62% as risk-on trade sees the higher cost of funds.