Sensex Gains Over 200 Points; SBI Top Gainer Post March Quarter Results

The domestic stock markets have opened in the green, building on the nearly 2 per cent rally witnessed on Friday as the nationwide decline in Covid cases has raised hopes of gradual unlocking by the state governments. At 9:19 am, the BSE Sensex was trading at 50,764.25, higher by 220.87 points or 0.42 per cent and the NSE Nifty was at 15,223.50, up 49.50 points or 0.33 per cent. SBI is in focus on the back of stellar March quarter numbers reported on Friday.

The broader markets are also trading firm, with the BSE Midcap index gaining 0.5 per cent and the BSE Smallcap index adding 0.8 per cent in early trading.

Asian shares got off to a cautious start on Monday as investors anxiously awaited a key read on U.S. inflation this week for guidance on monetary policy, while Bitcoin took a hammering after China cracked down on mining and trading of the cryptocurrency.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was barely changed in slow trade. Japan's Nikkei added 0.1 per cent and South Korea was flat.

US stocks ended mostly lower on Friday, weighed down by technology and consumer discretionary shares, while the dollar edged higher after stronger-than-expected US manufacturing data.

The Dow Jones rose 0.36 per cent, whereas the S&P 500 lost 0.08 per cent and Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.48 per cent.

On the earnings front, Grasim Industries, India Cements, JK Paper and Mahanagar Gas will declare their Q4 numbers during the day.

On the stock-specific front, SBI is the top gainer among Sensex stocks; the shares of India's largest lender have gained more than 2 per cent at Rs 411.50, extending the 3 per cent gains witnessed post the March quarter results on Friday. SBI had reported a 80 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 6,451 crore in the quarter ended March 2021 compared with Rs 3,581 crore during the same period last year on the back of a decline in provisions for bad loans an annual basis. 

Other financial stocks are also going strong, with HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and HDFC gainig around a per cent each on the BSE. 

On the other hand, metal stocks are seeing some selling pressure, with JSW Steel, Hindlaco and Tata Steel losing 1.8 per cent to 2.6 per cent each on the BSE.