Indices open higher; breadth strong

Equity indices opened higher and traded with decent gains in early trade. The Nifty traded above the 17,400 mark. Barring metal shares, buying demand was seen across the board.

At 9:22 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 274.33 points or 0.47% to 58,217.08. The Nifty 50 index added 87.15 points or 0.5% to 17,412.65.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.57% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.9%.

Buyers outnumbered sellers. On the BSE, 1889 shares rose and 551 shares fell. A total of 72 shares were unchanged.

Stocks in Spotlight:

ONGC declined 4.76%. The government has proposed to sell more than 9.43 crore equity shares (0.75% of total paid up equity) through offer for sale on March 30 and March 31. The government also has an option to sell another lot of more than 9.43 crore equity shares via OFS, collectively representing 1.5% stake. The floor price for the offer has been fixed at Rs 159 per share.

Lemon Tree Hotels gained 2.49%. The company has signed a License Agreement for 132 room hotel project at Rishikesh in Uttarakhand under the company`s brand Aurika Hotels & Resorts - Luxury by Lemon Tree Hotels. The hotel is expected to be operational by March 2025.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks were trading higher on Wednesday as investors watch for developments surrounding the war in Ukraine.

Japanese retail sales fell in February for the first time in five months. Retail sales fell 0.8% in February from a year earlier, government data showed on Wednesday.

US stocks rose on Tuesday, extending Wall Street`s winning streak as traders monitored ceasefire negotiations in Europe and key levels in the bond market.

Russian claimed it would reduce its attacks on Ukraine as delegates from the two countries met for their latest face-to-face peace talks in Istanbul. Moscow said it would cut back its military activity near Ukraine`s capital of Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv, as per reports. Ukrainian officials have pushed for a cease-fire agreement and a resolution to the humanitarian crisis sparked by Moscow`s invasion.

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