Gains in IT stocks supported the markets
Domestic stock markets gave up half of early gains on Thursday after opening 1 per cent higher amid gains in IT stocks, a day after Infosys reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter ended June 30. At 9:24 am, the S&P BSE Sensex index traded 122.01 points - or 0.34 per cent - higher at 36,173.82, while the broader NSE Nifty 50 benchmark was up 27.25 points - or 0.26 per cent - at 10,645.45. The Sensex had opened 349.39 points (0.97 per cent) higher at 36,401.20, and the Nifty started the day at 10,706.20 as against its previous close of 10,618.20.
Infosys shares were stuck in the 10 per cent upper circuit at Rs 914.55 apiece on the BSE, after the IT major reported a net profit of Rs 4,233 crore for the April-June period. Analysts had on average expected a profit of Rs 3,987 crore, news agency Reuters reported citing Refinitiv data.
Earlier, larger rival Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) had missed June-quarter profit estimates, and Wipro reported stronger-than-expected earnings.
Analysts awaited more large cap companies to report their financial results for the April-June period.
Equities in other Asian markets fell, weighed down by concern about deteriorating US-China relations and the economic cost of a resurgence in coronavirus infections that is prompting some places to reimpose containment measures.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia Pacific shares outside Japan was last seen trading 1.19 per cent lower, while Japan's Nikkei 225 benchmark was down 0.49 per cent.
Even news that China's economy rebounded more than expected in the second quarter from a record contraction was not enough to pull regional equities out of the red.
While China's Shanghai Composite index traded 1.41 per cent lower at the time, Hong Kong's Hang Seng and South Korea's KOSPI barometeres were down 1.17 per cent and 0.77 per cent respectively.
The E-Mini S&P 500 futures moved 0.42 per cent lower, indicating a negative start for Wall Street on Thursday.
Overnight in the US, equities rose with the S&P 500 benchmark hovering near its highest level in more than four months following promising early data for a potential COVID-19 vaccine and a strong quarterly showing by Goldman Sachs. Moderna Inc rose 5.8 per cent after a small-scale study showed its experimental COVID-19 vaccine produced high levels of virus-killing antibodies.
The S&P 500 index closed 0.91 per cent higher, whereas the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite indices rose 0.85 per cent and 0.59 per cent respectively.
