Markets Flat To Negative, Bharti Airtel Up 2%

The Indian benchmark equity indices have opened flat to negative in the absence of strong positive cues. The BSE Sensex and Nifty are both down by 0.1% at this time.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh will make a statement on coal block allocation in the Parliament today. The Parliament has seen a logjam in the past four days due to the CAG report on coal block allocation.

Except for Nikkei and KOSPI, all the Asian markets are trading in the red. Hang Seng has declined by 0.16% at this time of the day. The Shanghai markets, however, are down by over 1% over the weak economic sentiment. China Petroleum, Asia’s biggest oil refiner, has posted its lowest half-year profit since 2008.

Among the sectoral indices, Oil & Gas is leading the gains, trading up by 0.64%. The Healthcare index is also trading with 0.23% gains. Most of the other indices are flat in trades. CG, Metals, IT, Bankex and Realty are down by about 0.5% each.

Of the Sensex stocks, Bharti Airtel is trading up by nearly 2% at the moment. Mahindra & Mahindra is also up by 1.47% on news that the company is looking to build a strong product portfolio over the next few years as the demand for the electric cars is expected to pick up. Reliance Industries is trading 0.93% higher. Jindal Steel, on the other hand, is down by 2.16% and its peer Sensex participant Sterlite is also down over 1%.

Among the other shares, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals has surged by 4.72%. Opto Circuits is trading in about 3% gains, and auto part maker Motherson Sumi Systems is higher by 2.3%. Wockhardt has tanked 3.21%. Similarly, IFCI, Lanco Infra, HDIL and Adani Ports all have lost 2% in the morning hours.

The advance-decline ratio is currently positive, with over half of the total shares showing advancement.

Ahead today, we expect the markets to remain volatile.