The benchmarks indices touched fresh highs in afternoon trading on Tuesday, due to positive global cues. Asian markets are trading largely in the green and the European indices have also opened on a strong footing. At 12:38 pm, the BSE Sensex was trading at 54,725.10, higher by 314.65 points or 0.57 per cent and the NSE Nifty was at 16,340.75, up 81.85 points or 0.50 per cent. There is buying across the board, led by information technology and financial heavyweights. All the BSE sectoral indices are trading in the green, with the exception of the metal and FMCG space.
The broader markets are however lagging behind their largecap counterparts, with the BSE Midcap index trading flat and BSE Smallcap index edging lower by 0.4 per cent.
In the currency market, the rupee depreciated 20 paise to 74.46 against the US dollar in opening trading, tracking the firm American currency. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened on a weak note at 74.40 against the dollar, then fell further to 74.46.
In the primary market, Aptus Value Housing Finance IPO and Chemplast Sanmar IPO have opened for bidding.
On the stock specific front, Bharti Airtel, Tech Mahindra, Kotak Mahindra Bank and HDFC gained 1.4-3.9 per cent each on the BSE.
Among stocks in the news, Reliance Industries has gained 0.9 per cent to ₹ 2,097 after its arm Reliance New Energy Solar, along with strategic investors Paulson & Co. Inc. and Bill Gates, and a few others, announced an investment of $144 million in Ambri Inc, an energy storage company based in Massachusetts, USA. Industries Industries touched a high of ₹ 2,112 earlier in the day.
On the other hand, Powergrid, SBI, ITC and Hindustan Unilever shed 1-2 per cent each on the BSE.
The BSE market breadth is weak. Out of 3263 stocks traded on the BSE, there are 1062advancing stocks as against 2068 declines.