Markets extend gains, Nifty tops 7,650; RIL up over 3%

Markets have turned range bound in noon trades led by gains in index heavyweights such as Reliance Industries and HDFC. However, profit taking in select pharma and auto shares capped upside gains.

At 1:50 pm, the 30-share Sensex was up 212 points at 25,250 and the 50-share Nifty was up about 60 points at 7,671.

Meanwhile, the uncertainty over the crucial GST Bill has loomed back as the hopes of tax reform being passed in the current session of Parliament has faded.

Further, the Union Cabinet has approved the Real Estate (Regulation & Development) Bill, 2015. The Bill will now be taken up for consideration and passing by the Parliament. In a statement the government said that the Bill will provide uniform regulatory environment to ensure speedy adjudication of disputes and orderly growth of the real estate sector.

The BSE Realty Index was up 1.1% while the Nifty Realty index was up 1.4%. Individually, DLF was up 0.5%, Ashiana Housing rose 1.6%, Phoenix Mills gained 5%, Unitech surged 2.8% and Prestige Estates jumped 2.3%.

BSE Metal, Oil &Gas, and Energy shares have rebounded in today’s trades, up between 1%-2% each. However, BSE Healthcare, Bankex, and Auto indices were the most hit, down between 0.1-0.5% each

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries has dipped 0.7% after the company announced research collaboration with Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel & Health Research Institute of Santiago, Spain for brain therapies". Among other peers, Lupin has lost 1.5%, Pfizer has dipped 0.6$

Other pharma company Aurobindo Pharma has rallied 1.5% after the pharma company received US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA)approval to manufacture and market two drugs- Eptifibatide Injection and Levonorgestrel Tablet.

NTPC has climbed over 2% after it announced that it is exploring solar energy projects in Uttar Pradesh.

On the flip side, Tata Motors witnessed profit taking and was down 1% after recent gains post 8% rise in its global sales, including that of Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) vehicles, at 90,695 units in November.

Capital Goods shares are trading mixed ahead of the IIP data, which is scheduled for tomorrow. L&T is higher by 0.7% while BHEL has dipped 1.1%

Other notable losers on the Sensex are M&M, SBI, Maruti Suzuki, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank all down between 0.6%-25 each.

Shares of shipping companies are trading higher after the union cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday gave nod to the proposal for introducing steps to encourage shipbuilding and ship repair industry in India under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.