New Delhi: The Indian equity benchmarks edged higher on Friday led by gains in information technology and auto shares. The Sensex was trading in a band of 244 points and Nifty 50 index touched an intraday high of 15,823.25 and low of 15,744.85. The upside was capped as baking and financial services shares came under selling pressure.
As of 1:49 pm, the Sensex was up 170 points at 52,823 and Nifty 50 index advanced 59 points to 15,838.
Meanwhile, European markets were trading lower with England’s FTSE 100 index declining 0.9 per cent, France’s CAC40 index falling 0.36 per cent and Germany’s DAX slipping 1 per cent.
Back home, seven of 11 sector gauges compiled by the National Stock Exchange were trading higher led by the Nifty Auto index’s 1.5 per cent gain. Nifty Media, Information Technology, Pharma, Realty and FMCG indices also roe between 0.7-1 per cent.
On the other hand, Nifty Bank, PSU Bank and Financial Services indices were trading with a negative bias.
Broader markets were outperforming their larger peers as Nifty Midcap 100 index rose 1.4 per cent and Nifty Smallcap 100 index advanced 0.6 per cent.
Among the individual shares, Chennai-based commercial vehicle maker – Ashok Leyland – rose as much as 10 per cent to hit an intraday high of ₹ 137.45 after the company announced that its subsidiary Switch Mobility, electric bus and light commercial vehicle company, has entered into a strategic agreement with Dana, the global leader in drivetrain and e-propulsion systems. As part of the agreement, Dana will make a strategic investment in Switch Mobility and will also be a preferred supplier of electric drivetrain components for the company’s e-bus and EV commercial vehicle offering, Ashok Leyland said in a press release.
Tech Mahindra was top Nifty gainer, the stock advanced as much as 9.7 per cent to hit record high of ₹ 1,237.30 after it reported a 42.91 per cent growth in net profit in the June quarter to ₹ 1,365.7 crore on the back of higher revenues and an expansion in profit margins. The net profit in the year-ago period stood at ₹ 955.6 crore. Tech Mahindra shares touched a 52-week high of ₹ 1,237 on the BSE and at 1:20 pm, the shares were trading at ₹ 1,218.90, up ₹ 91 or 8 per cent, on the BSE.
Adani Ports, HCL Technologies, Mahindra & Mahindra, Dr Reddy’s Labs, Power Grid, Shree Cements, Bajaj Auto, Coal India and Cipla were also among the gainers.
On the flipside, State Bank of India, SBI Life, Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Finance, UPL, Hindalco, ICICI Bank, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel and Nestle India were among the losers.
On the IPO front, Rolex Rings IPO was subscribed 30.44 times till 1:35 pm on the last day of the issue.
The overall market breadth was positive as 1,951 shares were advancing while 1,208 were rading lower on the BSE.
(NDTV Business)