Sensex trims early gains, still up by 126 points in late morning

Mumbai : The S&P BSE benchmark Sensex trimmed early gains but was still up by 126 points in late morning trade following sustained buying in Realty, oil&gas, consumer durables, Capital goods, Energy and Industrials sectors amid positive Asian cues. The BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.87 per cent and the BSE Small-Cap index was also up 0.97 percent. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex. The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong.

The Sensex opened higher at 29,201.01 and rose further to 29,315.18. It was quoting at 29,293.89 at 1100hrs, showing a rise of 126.21 points, or 0.43 per cent. The NSE 50-share Nifty also rose 38.55 points or 0.43 per cent to quote at 9,069 at 1100hrs. Major gainers were, GAIL 1.91 per cent, Larsen 1.50 per cent, Tata Motors 1.45 per cent, NTPC 1.40 per cent, HeroMotoco 1.13 per cent and Reliance 0.91 per cent. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 356.64 crore yesterday, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.

Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 779.91 crore, as per provisional data. Globally, Asian stocks were trading higher as investors were on the edge ahead of a vote on US health care later today that could be a barometer for future Trump administration’s policies. The US stock market bounced back from the previous day sell-off to close marginally higher yesterday as gains in tech stocks helped lift indices.

PTI