Key indices drift higher on late buying

All Eyes On Earnings Season

• DBSE Sensex settled 271.50 pts or 0.38% higher at 71,657.71
• Sensex hit a low of 71,110.98 and a high of 71,733.84 during session
• Nifty advanced 73.85 pts or 0.34% to 21,618.70
• Global weakness weighs down on domestic indices
• Investors’ focus shifting to Q3 numbers
• IIP and inflation to be released this week

Mumbai: Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty bounced back from intra-day lows to settle higher on Wednesday, supported by a fag-end buying in market heavyweights Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank. Investors preferred to stay cautious ahead of macroeconomic data like IIP and inflation to be released this week, traders said.

After a muted opening, the BSE benchmark swung between gains and losses before settling 271.50 points or 0.38 per cent higher at 71,657.71 points. The index hit a low of 71,110.98 and a high of 71,733.84 during the session. The Nifty advanced 73.85 points or 0.34 per cent to 21,618.70.

“The weakness in global indices continued to weigh down the domestic indices with every up move. The market is looking for fresh triggers for a direction, and the release of US and Indian inflation data may provide a near-term direction in the market. The investor’s focus will be shifted to the earnings season, on a sequential basis, the earnings growth is likely to be lower, while the expectations for auto, capital goods, and cement will remain strong,” said Vinod Nair, head (research), Geojit Financial Services.

“Markets were extremely volatile, but ended higher on selective buying in late trades as investors await the US inflation data on Thursday, which will provide some hint on Fed's interest rate decision going ahead. Helping positive sentiments were improving European stock markets in the backdrop of negative US Treasury bond yields, which were seen weighing on the US dollar,” said Prashanth Tapse.