The key equity barometers traded with small gains in the morning trade. The Nifty traded above the 24,300 level. PSU bank shares continued their upward momentum, extending gains for the fifth consecutive trading session. Trading could be volatile due to the monthly F&O series expiry today.
At 10:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 38.87 points or 0.04% to 80,267. The Nifty 50 index rose 30 points or 0.12% to 24,304.5.
The broader market outperformed the benchmark indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.68% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.07%.
The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,691 shares rose and 909 shares fell. A total of 162 shares were unchanged.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty PSU Bank index rose 1.25% to 6,868.75. The index surged 8.70% in the five consecutive trading sessions.
Indian Overseas Bank (up 3.17%), Punjab & Sind Bank (up 2.9%), Indian Bank (up 2.49%), UCO Bank (up 2.49%), Bank of India (up 2.44%), Central Bank of India (up 1.65%), Punjab National Bank (up 1.54%), Canara Bank (up 1.49%), State Bank of India (up 1.24%) and Bank of Maharashtra (up 1.13%) added.
Stocks in Spotlight:
NBCC (India) rallied 4.36% after the company signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Housing & Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) for the development of a 10-acre institutional plot in Noida Sector 62.
KEC International added 2.84% after the company announced that it has secured a prestigious turnkey order worth Rs 1,704 crore in its Transmission & Distribution (T&D) business from Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL).
Sonata Software rose 1.02% after the company said that it has secured a multi-million dollar modernization deal with a global leader in access solutions to standardize the client’s APAC business processes across 13 countries.