Indices open flat, Nifty above 11,600

Friday,   12-Apr-2019   09:33 AM (IST)

Benchmark indices opened flat with some positive bias on Friday, taking cues from Asian markets. At 9:17 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 38,687, up 80 points, or 0.21 per cent, with Asian Paints, Tata Steel, Infosys, Sun Pharma, and Vedanta among the top gainers. The broader Nifty50 was ruling at 11,614, up 17.5 points, or 0.15 per cent. Shares of SpiceJet Tata Motors gained about 8 per cent in the early trade. All the sectoral indices are trading in the green with Nifty Media, Nifty Pharma, and Nifty Metal among the top gainers. In the broader markets, the S&P BSE Midcap was trading at 15,416, up 33 points, or 0.22 per cent while the S&P BSE Smallcap gained 23 per cent, or 0.15 per cent, to trade at 14,990. Asian shares were flat and US Treasury yields pulled back on Friday. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was barely higher, up 0.03 per cent. Higher Chinese iron ore prices helped Australian shares outpace regional markets, pushing Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index up 0.7 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei stock index gained 0.1 per cent. Oil prices were firm on Friday, supported by ongoing supply cuts led by producer club OPEC and by US sanctions on petroleum exporters Iran and Venezuela.