Indices hit fresh life highs; Nifty above 21,250 mark

The frontline indices were trading with decent gains in early trade. The Nifty traded above the 21,250 level. Metal, IT and oil & gas shares advanced while financial services, bank and realty stocks declined.

At 09:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 215.60 points or 0.31% to 70,729.80. The Nifty 50 index advanced 71.70 points or 0.34% to 21,254.40.

The Nifty 50 and S&P BSE Sensex hit an all-time high at 21,298.15 and 70,853.56 respectively, in early trade today.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.34% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.70%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,082 shares rose and 814 shares fell. A total of 96 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) bought shares worth Rs 3,570.07 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 553.17 crore in the Indian equity market on 15 December, provisional data showed.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Vedanta advanced 1.16% after the company proposes to hold a meeting of its duly constituted Committee of Directors on 19 December 2023 to consider the proposal for issuance of Non-Convertible Debentures on a private placement basis as part of its routine refinancing that is undertaken in ordinary course of business.

SBI rose 0.50%. The bank has executed transactions documents for purchase of 3,70,644 shares (6.35%) of Canpac Trends Private Limited (CTPL). CTPL provides paper-based packaging solutions.

Hero MotoCorp added 1.13% after the board of directors of the company approved purchase of additional shares of Ather Energy Pvt. Ltd, an existing Associate company for up to Rs 140 crore. After this transaction, Hero`s stake in Ather Energy will increase to 39.7% from 36.7%.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper declined 0.13% to 7.187 as compared with previous close 7.194.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 83.3125, compared with its close of 83.3050 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 February 2024 settlement rose 0.13% to Rs 62,538.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.04% to 101.91.

The United States 10-year bond yield added 0.44% to 3.949.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for February 2024 settlement added 42 cents or 0.55% to $77.03 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks were trading higher on Friday as Wall Street continued to rally after the U.S. Federal Reserve held rates and laid out a roadmap for cuts in 2024 and beyond. Investors await key economic data out of China, including November house prices, industrial output, and retail sales data.

Japan�s manufacturing activity contracted in December for the seventh straight month, according to a private survey. A flash reading of the au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers� index shrank to 47.7 in December from 48.3 in November, signaling the quickest deterioration in manufacturing business conditions for ten months. The au Jibun Bank flash services PMI, however, was 52.0 in December versus 50.8 in November, the fastest gain in the three months.

US stocks ended higher on Thursday lifted by optimism that borrowing rates will decrease next year following a dovish pivot by the Federal Reserve. The 10-year Treasury note yield dropped below 4% for the first time since August as traders bet on rate cuts for 2024 mount.

The Bank of England kept interest rates at the highest level in 15 years as its policy makers persisted with their higher-for-longer message despite growing market bets on a wave of cuts in 2024. The Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to keep its key policy rate at 5.25% for the third consecutive meeting, according to minutes of the decision released Thursday.

The European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged as expected on Thursday and signalled an early end to its last remaining bond purchase scheme.

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