The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Thursday, started the session flat but soon moved into positive territory as investors look at earnings results and mixed global cues. 


After starting flat, at 10.00 am, the S&P BSE Sensex gained 156 points or 0.26 per cent to quote 59,724, and the Nifty was trading with marginal gains of 35 points or 0.20 per cent at 17,654.


On the 30-share Sensex platform, Titan, L&T, PowerGrid, Tata Motors, and NTPC were trading in the green. On the flip side, Infosys, Nestle India, Reliance, Tata Steel, and UltraTech Cement were among the early losers.



Among the specific stocks on Nifty, Adani Ports, UltraTech Cement, Titan Company, BPCL, and Bajaj Finserv were among major gainers, while losers were Cipla, Divis Labs, SBI Life Insurance, Apollo Hospitals, and HUL.

 

In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices gained 0.18 per cent and 0.4 per cent, respectively.  


Sectorwise, the Nifty Pharma index declined 0.37 per cent, while the Nifty Auto was up 0.2 per cent. Most indices remained flat. 


In the previous session on Wednesday, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 159 points or 0.27 per cent at 59,568, and the Nifty settled down 41 points or 0.23 per cent at 17,619. 





In global markets, Dow Jones dipped while the S&P 500 remained stable on Wednesday. The S&P 500 gained on the back of tech stocks, however, Johnson & Johnson and Goldman Sachs Q1 results disappointed investors. 

 

Elsewhere in Asia markets opened lower on Thursday. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dipped 0.53 per cent, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.52 per cent. 

 

The US dollar gained on Thursday amid weak US economic statistics and predictions of US Fed interest rate increases.

 

Brent futures were down by 37 cents at $82.76 per barrel. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) slipped 28 cents to trade at $78.88. 


The Rupee opened flat at 82.24 per dollar against the previous close of 82.23.