Stocks hovered in small range in morning trade after an initial upmove triggered by an overnight slump in global crude oil prices. At 10:21 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 110.93 points or 0.31% at 36,458.01. The Nifty 50 index was up 43.90 points or 0.4% at 10,952.60. Asian stocks were mixed ahead of the outcome of the US Fed monetary policy meeting.
Domestic stocks drifted higher in early trade, extending their prior six-day rising trend. Gains were triggered by an overnight slump in global crude oil prices. Oil prices slumped over 5% on Tuesday in heavy trade due to fears of oversupply and deteriorating demand. India imports majority of its crude requirements and a decline in crude eases concerns on fiscal deficit, inflation and gives more room for the government to boost growth through spending on infrastructure.
The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.89%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.91%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 1381 shares rose and 533 shares fell. A total of 105 shares were unchanged.
Asian Paints (up 2.92%), Axis Bank (up 2.02%), Sate Bank of India (up 1.57%), ITC (up 1.26%) and Bajaj Auto (up 0.98%) edged higher from the Sensex pack.
Infosys (down 1.69%), Vedanta (down 1.03%), TCS (down 0.7%), Wipro (down 0.4%) and Tata Motors (down 0.37%) edged lower from the Sensex pack.
PVR rose 0.38%. PVR said its board will meet on 21 December 2018 to consider raising funds. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 18 December 2018.
Lemon Tree Hotels rose 0.78%. Lemon Tree Hotels said it signed a license agreement for a 69 room property located at Viman Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra under the company's brand 'Lemon Tree Hotel'. The hotel is expected to be operational by March 2019 and shall be 3rd hotel besides other 2 owned hotels of the company in Pune. Carnation Hotels, the hotel management arm of the company will be operating and marketing this hotel. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 18 December 2018.
Overseas, Asian stocks were trading mixed Wednesday following a volatile US session. US stocks nudged higher on Tuesday in a volatile day as investors braced for Wednesday's Federal Reserve policy decision against the backdrop of recent turmoil in global markets.
The Federal Reserve wraps up its final policy meeting of 2018 on Wednesday. The Federal Open Market Committee is expected to raise its short-term interest rate by a modest quarter-point to a range of 2.25% to 2.5%. Investors are closely watching the Federal Reserve monetary policy guidance for 2019. The central bank forecasts three more rate hikes in 2019, but softer global growth could cause a shift in its hawkish stance. The Bank of Japan's monetary policy decision is due Thursday, followed by a briefing from Governor Haruhiko Kuroda. A Bank of England decision is also due on Thursday.
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