Benchmark stock market indices opened marginally higher in early trade on Monday despite negative sentiments. This was due to gains in fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) stocks.
The S&P BSE Sensex was up 0.13 per cent to 63,061.68 at 9:30 am, while the NSE Nifty 50 gained 0.18 per cent to trade just short of 18,700.
Most of the sectoral indices were in positive territory, with the Nifty FMCG index gaining over 1 per cent. Nifty Auto and Nifty Pharma were also top gainers.
The top five gainers on the Nifty 50 were Adani Enterprises, Tata Consumer Products, Cipla, UPL and Hero MotoCorp. On the other hand, the top losers were TCS, BPCL, Tata Steel, Bharti Airtel and NTPC.
Benchmark stock On the other hand, shares of Shree Cement slumped as much as 10 per cent after a report related to tax evasion, following surveys by the Income Tax department in Rajasthan.
Ameya Ranadive, research analyst at Choice, said, “In the previous close, the BSE Sensex sank 260 points to 62,979, while the Nifty50 fell 106 points to 18,666 and formed a bearish candlestick pattern on a daily basis. When the Nifty’s daily data is examined, it is clear that the index attempted but failed three times to surpass its all-time high.”
