Trades still narrow, markets marginally up

The Indian markets are continuing to trade in a very narrow range. The markets opened in the green, turned negative and are now trading higher in the green zone again. Among the sectoral indices, Realty is the biggest loser, down 2.34%. IT and Teck are down by 0.77% and 0.45% respectively. On the other hand, Bankex is trading higher by 1.88%. Healthcare and Capital Goods are among the other indices trading higher by more than 1%.

Other Asian markets are trading higher, with Nikkei and Hang Seng up 0.72% and 0.83% respectively. Shanghai is up 1.43% on the back of speculations that the govt. may introduce policies that will fuel economic growth.

The European markets have opened on a very flat note, but are trading in the green zone.

Back home, Sun Pharma is the leading index gainer, up 2.86% at Rs 564.55. Other Metals stocks like Jindal Steel and Tata Steel are up 1.56% and 0.57% respectively. The banking stocks are also trading higher. ICICI Bank and SBI are trading higher by 1.71% and 1.45% respectively, while HDFC Bank is up 0.18% at Rs 515.10. Other stocks like Bharti Airtel, Hero MotoCorp, NTPC, etc. are also trading marginally in the green zone.

On the other hand, DLF is the biggest index loser, down 6.31% at Rs 201.10. The IT pack is also looking weak with stocks like Infosys and TCS trading lower 0.95% and 0.92% respectively. Others like GAIL India, Tata Power, RIL, Cipla, Coal India, etc. are trading marginally in the red zone.

In individual stocks, ONGC is trading lower by 2.29% to Rs 281.25 after yesterday's FPO flop show. ACC is trading 1.19% higher at Rs 1338.95 after the company reported its production and dispatches data for Feb 2012. Pennar Industries is up 1.88% to Rs 32.45 after the company announced that it has bagged orders worth Rs 25 crore.

The market breadth, which indicates the overall health of the market, is positive. 1418 shares have gained, 1250 shares have declined, and 142 shares remained unchanged.

We expect the markets to remain volatile for the rest of the day, and advise readers to play with caution.