Markets Trade in Red

The Global Markets emanate positive vibes this morning. U.S. stocks jumped, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index close to a three-year high, as retail and job market data bolstered confidence in the economy. European stocks advanced to a one- month high after a report showed U.S. companies added more jobs than forecast and the European Central Bank eased collateral rules to help Portugal access emergency funds. This morning Asian stocks rose, driving the benchmark index higher for a third week, as increasing U.S. retail sales and employment boosted confidence in the strength of the global economic recovery. In commodities, Oil traded near the highest in three weeks in New York, heading for a second weekly gain, as investors bet that shrinking stockpiles and signs of economic recovery in the U.S. indicated fuel demand may increase. Gold rose to a two-week high on speculation that Europe’s sovereign-debt crisis will spread, boosting the appeal of the precious metal as a haven. Copper futures rose to the highest in almost three months on concern that adverse weather in Chile, the worlds biggest producer, and a strike at the Grasberg mine in Indonesia will tighten supplies. The Sensex after opening in the green with a 50 points gain quickly lost its ground to slip into the negative due to pressure in the metal space. Currently the Sensex is down 53 points at 19,024 while the Nifty lost 19 points at 5,709. The broader markets were not spared either from the fall. The midcap index gave up 0.1% while the small cap is flat with a negative bias at 8,442. Metal stocks in the Sensex namely Sterlite, Hindalco, Jindal Steel and Tata Steel down 2-3% were the top losers. ICICI Bank, L&T, Hindustan Unilever and Jaiprakash Associates down 0.6-0.8% were the other major losers. The shares of coal mining companies – Coal India and Sesa Goa  plunged more than 8% each after the a 10-member Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday approved the new Mining Bill. The market breadth is positive. Of the total 1921 stocks traded on the BSE, 1078 stocks have advanced while 771 declined.