Sensex, Nifty recover from day's low, cement stocks fall
In an interview to NDTV Profit, he said that that IGL is yet to work on the liabilities of the order. “There won’t be immediate cuts in CNG, PNG prices,” he clarified.
A positive tick on the European bourses boosted sentiments on the Dalal Street. At 02.05 pm, the Sensex traded 40 points or 0.2% higher at 17,284, which was the highest point of the day. The Nifty index was up 9 points at 5,253.
Markets in Europe opened higher after deep cuts yesterday. The CAC 40 index in France was up 0.5% while Britain's FTSE 100 index traded flat with a positive bias. Asian markets closed off the day's low.
Banking stocks (0.9%) led the recovery. Private lender Kotak Mahindra (2.3%) was the top Nifty gainer. ICICI Bank (1.2%) and public lender SBI (1.1%) also traded with gains.
Defensive stocks like healthcare (0.9%) and FMCG (0.4%) saw sustained buying interest. Drug maker Ranbaxy (1.7%) and Sun Pharma (1.6%) traded higher.
However, metal stocks (-0.8%) remained weak. Steel major JSPL (-2%) and mining firms Sesa Goa (-1.6%) and Sterlite (-1.3%) continued to trade with losses.
Cement stocks were the biggest losers on the Nifty index. ACC (-5.3%) and Ambuja Cements (-4.5%) tanked on speculation of large penalties for alleged cartelisation. Most cement stocks traded with deep cuts.
The market breadth improved significantly and 52% stocks traded higher on the broader BSE 500 index.