KEY EQUITY INDICES TRADE WITH STRONG GAINS; MARKET BREADTH IN FAVOR OF BUYERS

The key equity indices traded with strong gains in early trade as the bourses witnessed across the board buying in key index pivotals. The Nifty traded above the 18,950 level. Stocks across sectors advanced, with auto, oil & gas and metal shares rising the most.

At 09:24 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 390.91 points or 0.62% to 63,539.06. The Nifty 50 index added 108.15 points or 0.57% to 18,965.40.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 1.14% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 1.12%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2248 shares rose and 337 shares fell. A total of 88 shares were unchanged.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper declined 0.18% to 7.353 from its previous close of 7.366.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 83.2375, compared with its close of 83.2550 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 December 2023 settlement rose 0.05% to Rs 60,980.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.04% to 106.56.

The United States 10-year bond yield advanced 0.29% to 4.860.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for December 2023 settlement gained $1.10 or 1.25% to $89.03 a barrel.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Colgate-Palmolive (India) rose 0.49%. The company reported 22.3% rise in net profit to Rs 340 crore on 6.1% rise in net sales to Rs 1462.4 crore in Q2 FY24 over Q2 FY23.

Shriram Finance jumped 8.65%. The company reported 12.59% rise in standalone net profit to Rs 1750.84 crore on 15.45% jump in total income to Rs 8,564.45 crore in Q2 FY24 over Q2 FY23.

Dixon Technologies (India) added 0.81%. The company`s consolidated net profit rose 47% to Rs 113 crore on 28% decline in net sales to Rs 4,943 crore in Q2 September 2023 over Q2 September 2022.

Global Markets:

Asian stocks are trading higher on Friday in an attempt to rebound from sharp losses previously. U.S. stock-index futures rose driven by solid earnings from Amazon and Intel.

US stocks tumbled on Thursday, dragged by tech and tech-adjacent megacap shares as investors digested mixed quarterly earnings and signs of economic resiliency that could encourage the Federal Reserve to keep interest rates at a restrictive level longer than expected. U.S. data overnight showed the U.S. economy grew almost 5% in the third quarter.

Overnight, the European Central Bank left interest rates unchanged as expected. ECB President Christine Lagarde told a press conference the euro zone economy was weak but stressed that price pressures remained strong and could be aggravated further if the Middle East conflict pushed energy costs higher.

All eyes were on U.S. data later in the session that may show core inflation growing 0.3% in September on a monthly basis, pushing the annual rate lower to 3.7% from 3.9% a month ago.

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