Equities edge higher on value-buying, pharma, IT shares spurt

The BSE Sensex, which opened in the red, rebounded over 114 points to close at 35,378.60. The broader NSE Nifty climbed 42.60 points to finish just below the key 10,700-mark.

Markets benefited from value-buying in recently battered stocks amid mixed overseas cues, brokers said. 

The rupee recovering from record lows against the US dollar also bolstered sentiment, they added.

Global markets were largely mixed as investors assessed the trade relations between the US and other major economies.

The Sensex shrugged of its weak start and touched a high of 35,445.21 on robust buying in pharma and IT stocks. It finally settled at 35,378.60, showing a gain of 114.19 points, or 0.32 per cent. 

The broader NSE Nifty also went up by 42.60 points or 0.40 to end at Rs 10,699.90 after shuttling between 10,630.25 and 10,713.30.

Meanwhile, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth a net Rs 366.94 crore, while foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold equities worth Rs 1,205.12 crore yesterday, as per provisional data. 

"Appreciation in rupee over dollar and a positive rebound in global market provided some stability in domestic market. Pharma and IT stocks outperformed owing to the advantage of favourable exchange rate and improving outlook. However, global trade tensions may influence investors to retain a cautious approach to the market in the near term," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.

Sun Pharma was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, advancing 1.79 per cent.

Other gainers were Maruti Suzuki 1.72 per cent, Infosys 1.44 per cent, ONGC 1.28 per cent, RIL 1.10 per cent, TCS 1.09 per cent, Hero MotoCorp 1.07 per cent, Kotak Bank 1.05 per cent, Tata Steel 0.99 per cent, NTPC 0.94 per cent, Bajaj Auto 0.91 per cent, Tata Motors 0.44 per cent, ITC 0.80 per cent, M&M 0.57 per cent, Bharti Airtel 0.50 per cent, Wipro 0.31 per cent and IndusInd Bank 0.23 per cent.

However, Vedanta slumped 3.25 per cent after promoter Anil Agarwal unveiled his plan to delist his flagship Vedanta Resources Plc from London Stock Exchange and take it private. 

Other losers were ICICI Bank 1.62 per cent, HDFC Ltd 0.56 per cent, SBI 0.52 per cent, Power Grid 0.40 per cent, L&T 0.28 per cent, HUL 0.25 per cent, Asian Paints 0.23 per cent, Adani Ports 0.18 per cent, Coal India 0.15 per cent, Axis Bank 0.12 per cent and Yes Bank 0.06 per cent.

The BSE healthcare index took the pole position among sectoral indices, climbing 1.80 per cent, followed by IT (1.07 per cent), auto (1 per cent), teck (0.95 per cent), oil and gas (0.78 per cent), FMCG (0.51 per cent), realty (0.30 per cent), infrastructure (0.25 per cent), power (0.12 per cent) and PSU (0.10 per cent).

However, metal index fell 0.27 per cent, bankex 0.19 per cent consumer durables 0.09 per cent and capital goods 0.07 per cent.

The broader markets showed an upward trend, with the BSE mid-cap index moving up 0.69 per cent and the small-cap gauge rising 0.44 per cent.

Banking shares edged lower even as the government said a five-pronged plan will be implemented to tackle bad loans, including setting up independent asset management companies (AMCs).

Meanwhile, most Asian shares dropped as sentiment remained fragile in the face of tense trade relations between the US and major economies. 

Shanghai Composite Index was up 0.41 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 1.41 per cent and Japan's Nikkei ended 0.12 per cent lower.

In Europe, Frankfurt's DAX fell 0.55 per cent, while Paris CAC 40 was down 0.88 per cent in their late morning deals. London's FTSE, however, was up 0.57 per cent.