Indian stocks were in the green Wednesday morning, after a bloodbath during the previous session -- Sensex fell over 1,000 points -- due to a host of reasons including high valuations, foreign portfolio investors lately pulling out funds from India, and a mild profit booking.
Firm GDP growth forecasts, inflation at manageable levels, political stability at the central government level, and signs that the central bank is done with their monetary policy tightening have painted a bright picture for the Indian stock market.
Benchmark indices--Sensex and Nifty--were 0.7-0.8 per cent higher from the Saturday closing. Among the widely-tracked Nifty 50 stocks, 39 advanced and the rest 11 declined at the opening bell.
The combined value of shares listed on Indian exchanges reached USD 4.33 trillion as of Monday's close, versus USD 4.29 trillion for Hong Kong, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Indian stock exchanges are closed Monday on the occasion of pran pratistha of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, with normal trading activities to resume on Tuesday.
Simultaneously, the Nifty took a hit of 243.30 points, kicking off at 21,786.00. Market sentiments were strongly bearish, reflecting concerns about the economic outlook.
BPCL, Tata Steel, Titan, ITC, and Maruti emerged as the top performers among Nifty companies, contributing significantly to the positive momentum whereas Divi's Lab, HCL Technology, NTPC, Wipro, and Infosys faced declines, reflecting the dynamic nature of the market.