Markets nudges higher in early trade; breadth strong

Equity indices traded with modest gains in early trade. The Nifty traded near the 16,700 mark. Banking and financial stocks saw buying demand while auto and FMCG shares fell.

At 9:20 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 169.62 points or 0.31% at 55,719.15. The Nifty 50 index gained 41.65 points or 0.25% at 16,672.90.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.17% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.4%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1,726 shares rose and 758 shares fell. A total of 144 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 2,263.90 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 1,686.85 crore in the Indian equity market on 11 March, provisional data showed.

Stocks in Spotlight:

One97 Communications (Paytm) tumbled 10.4%.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) directed Paytm Payments Bank to stop, with immediate effect, onboarding of new customers. The bank has also been directed to appoint an IT audit firm to conduct a comprehensive system audit of its IT system. Paytm Payments Bank is one of the payment instruments of Paytm.

Tech Mahindra rose 1.17%.The IT company on Saturday announced that it has approved the proposal to acquire 100% equity shares in Thirdware Solutions. Thirdware, headquartered in Mumbai, is a global player in Enterprise Applications focused in the areas of ERP, BIA, Cloud and business technologies.

Jubilant FoodWorks slumped 10%. The pizza maker said that the board of directors has accepted the resignation of Pratik Rashmikant Pota as the CEO and wholetime director of the company as he wishes to pursue opportunities outside the firm.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks were trading mixed on Monday as investors monitor a Covid wave in China. Meanwhile, oil prices continued to be volatile amid the Russia-Ukraine war.

Investors continued watching developments on the Russia-Ukraine war, which is disrupting shipping and air freight. Elsewhere, markets also monitored a recent wave of Covid infections in China � including the major city of Shenzhen.

U.S. stocks dropped on Friday as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict continued to unnerve investors. The U.S. government will revoke Russia`s most-favored nation trade status amid the conflict, the White House said Friday, noting that it will work with Group of Seven (G7) countries and the European Union to roll out new sanctions.

In U.S. economic reports, data from the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey showed a fall to an initial March reading of 59.7 from February`s level of 62.8.

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