Markets End Up 0.6%

After moderate volatility, the Indian markets ended the day in positives. The opening in the markets was good, with both the benchmark indices up by over 1%. In the afternoon sessions, a few points were dropped, but some of these were gained in later trades, due to which the ending was positive.

Earlier today, the Feb 2012 inflation numbers were announced, which increased marginally to 6.95%. The Railway Budget has proposed to look into passenger safety and has suggested an increase in train fares. Now, all eyes are set on the RBI's monetary policy review due tomorrow.

Among the other Asian indices, Hang Seng and Shanghai closed in negatives, while Nikkei sustained the volatility.

The European markets saw a positive opening and have continued trading in positives.

Dow Jones Futures is currently trading 1.68% or 217 points up at 13177, indicating a highly positive sentiment in the market.

Back home, Bankex surged by 1.8% by the close of day.CG, PSU and Power stayed positive and gained over 1%. Metals, CD, Teck, IT and Realty, on the other hand, were in negatives.

Among the Sensex stocks, NTPC was the top gainer with 2.63% gains. Hindalco, Tata Motors, ONGC, L&T and ICICI Bank all surged by over 2%. IT giant TCS was down by 3.56% by the end of the day. Another IT company, Wipro, was also in negative trades today. Jindal Steel and Tata Steel dropped over 1% each.

In other stocks, United Breweries has tanked 11% today after yesterday’s rally. Godrej Industries has also shed over 5%.

The overall market breadth remained mixed today. Out of a total of 3381 stocks traded on the BSE, 1608 (48%) advanced, 1638 (48%) declined and 135 (4%) remained unchanged.

The markets have been closing in positive this week, indicating short-term bullishness of investors and traders. It should be noted that on all 3 days, the markets have lost their initial gains in subsequent trades. Investors should take cues from this.

Two key events are set to happen over the next two days - the RBI's monetary policy review and the Union Budget. Investors should watch these events for the future performance of the economy.

On the back of the Union Budget due on Friday, we advise our readers to keep visiting our website for key updates on the budget. On the budget day itself, we will cover the budget live, and we will guide readers on sector-specific investments.