Banking and finance stocks made gains as Sensex opened in the green, thanks to a marginal gain of 124 points to reach 61,748. Nifty also gained 30 points to surge above 18,350. The gains could be attributed to inflation easing in the US, which also reflected in India's consumer price index that dipped below 7 per cent.
Global crude prices are down, while US markets remained subdued note as a reaction to comments on future monetary policy by US Federal Reserve. Indian stock indices were also buoyed by FIIs buying assets worth Rs 13,000 crore in the past month.
In a flat market, banking, media and auto were the top gainers, while IT and pharma slid into red territory. ONGC climbed despite a 30 per cent drop in profits due to a windfall tax imposed by the government.
China's sales and production along with interest rates for medium-term loans, are expected to affect the markets. As for Japan, the economy is struggling with lower consumer spending as its GDP failed to meet expectations. The decline followed moderate growth for most part of the fiscal year.
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