Indices open flat, but rise with L&T, DLF support

MUMBAI: Equities opened flat to negative on Tuesday morning, tracking mixed cues from Asian peers and amid uncertainty in the overall sentiment. At 10:05 am, the Bombay Stock Exchange’s Sensex was up 37 points or 0.25 per cent at 14,846.64. The index touched a high of 14,725.68 and low of 14,677.24 in trade so far.

Sensex gainers comprised Larsen & Toubro (up 0.98%), Maruti Suzuki (0.43%) and DLF (0.35%). HDFC Bank (down 3.11%), Ranbaxy Laboratories (1.82%), Satyam Computer (1.63%), Hindalco Industries (1.24%), Tata Motors (1.05%) and Infosys Technologies (1.05%) were the major losers. The National Stock Exchange’s Nifty was up 28 points or 0.62 per cent at 4531.05. The index touched a high of 4533.95 and low of 4468.55 in trade so far.

“We might see a flat opening due to global sentiments, but at the same time, a fresh short built up could be seen. The PCR (put-call-ratio) has come down to 0.85, indicating a huge short build up is happening in call options. In any technical bounce back, the Nifty might face very strong resistance around 4600 levels,” Standard Chartered - STCI Capital Market, said in a note.

Asian stocks fell, reversing earlier gains, after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said his government will take ``forceful'' measures to combat inflation. China’s CSI 300 Index was down 2.98 per cent, the Hang Seng was down 2.28 per cent in Hong Kong, the Straits Times lost 0.81 per cent in Singapore, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 was 0.48 per cent higher.

US stocks shook off the bulk of their steep losses on Monday, with JP Morgan Chase fronting a blue-chip rise just one day after its heavily discounted bid for Bear Stearns and the Federal Reserve's extraordinary discount rate cut. The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished 0.18 per cent higher, while the Standards & Poor’s 500 Index was down 0.9 per cent and the Nasdaq Composite Index shed 1.6 per cent.

Source : The Economic Times