Sensex rose over 100 points while the broader Nifty closed near its crucial psychological level of 8,550 ahead of the US presidential vote.
For most part of the day, the Sensex and Nifty traded in a choppy manner as investors were on sidelines ahead of the presidential election in the US. However, gains in auto, banking and oil & gas shares helped the benchmark indices close higher.
Meanwhile, stocks edged up on Tuesday as world markets braced for the outcome of one of the most contentious US presidential elections in history, with trade largely driven by cautious expectations of a win for Democrat Hillary Clinton.
The sharp swings of recent days across all asset classes gave way to a more subdued tone, with investors reluctant to make too many big bets as Americans prepared to vote.
Avinnash Gorakssakar, head of research at Moneylicious Capital, says if Hillary Clinton wins, the outlook for Indian markets will turn positive for the near term.
Back home from the Nifty basket of shares 31 ended higher while 20 closed lower.
Tata Motors was the top Nifty gainer the stock closed 6.7 per cent higher at Rs 540 on reporting strong Jaguar Land Rover sales in the month of October.
BHEL rose 3 per cent to close at Rs 143.20 after the company turned profitable in the September quarter.
ICICI Bank, Asian Paints, ACC, Yes Bank, Bajaj Auto, Bharti Infratel and ONGC were also among the gainers.
On the other hand, Sun Pharma, Cipla, Aurobindo Pharma, Maruti Suzuki and Tata Power were among the laggards.
The broader markets ended on higher with BSe mid-cap index advancing 0.36 per cent and small-cap index rising 0.16 per cent.
The Sensex closed 132 points higher at 27,591 and Nifty rose 46 points to 8,543.
3:23 p.m.: The European markets were trading on a flat note ahead of US Presidential elections. Germany's DAX slips 0.11 per cent, France's CAC40 index jumps 0.13 per cent and Britain's FTSE100 rises 0.14 per cent.
3:15 p.m.: Stock markets moved sharply higher on the back of buying in auto, banking and oil & gas shares. Sensex rises 152 points to 27,611 and Nifty jumps 53 points to 8,550.
3:00 p.m.: Hinduja flagship firm Ashok Leyland on Tuesday reported a 70.96 per cent increase in standalone net profit at Rs 294.41 crore for the second quarter that ended on September 30, 2016.
The company had posted a standalone net profit of Rs 172.2 crore for the corresponding period last fiscal year, it said in a filing to the BSE. Shares of Ashok Leyland were trading 2 per cent higher at Rs 91.55.
2:53 p.m.: BSE Auto index was the top sectoral gainer, up 1.26 per cent on the back of gains in Tata Motors, Bajaj Auto, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland and MRF.
2:27 p.m.: Shares of Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) surged as much as 5.6 per cent to hit intraday high of Rs. 146.80 after the state-run company reported a better-than-estimated net profit in the September quarter aided by higher other income.
BHEL posted net profit of Rs. 109 crore on sales of Rs. 6,780 crore compared with loss of Rs. 180.78 crore during the same quarter last year. Earnings reported by BHEL were ahead of Street estimates as analysts polled by NDTV Profit expected BHEL to report net profit of Rs. 59.2 crore on sales of Rs. 6,466 crore.
1:56 p.m.: Avinnash Gorakssakar, head of research at Moneylicious Capital, says if Hillary Clinton wins, the outlook for Indian markets will turn positive for the near term.
1:36 p.m.: Punjab Chemicals, Manali Petrochemicals, Z F Steering Gear, Sical Logistics, Arshiya International, Ojas Asset Reconstruction Company, Deccan Gold Mines and Ujaas Energy were among the laggards in the small-cap space.
1:24 p.m.: Pharma stocks are among the worst hit in trades so far. The BSE Healthcare index falls 1.25 per cent; Sun Pharma, Cipla, Aurobindo Pharma, Divis Labs, Cadila Healthcare and Jubilant Life Sciences were among the top decliners.
1:16 p.m.: The overall market breadth remains negative as 1,544 stocks fall while 1,140 advance on the BSE.
1:06 p.m.: Capital goods stocks were witnessing selling pressure. The BSE Capital Goods index falls 0.6 per cent; Crompton Greaves, Welspun Corp, VA Tech Wabag, ABB, Laxmi Machine Works, Suzlon Energy, Mahindra CIE and Larsen & Toubro were among the laggards.
12:50 p.m.: Shares of Tata Motors surged as much as 5.5 per cent to hit intraday high of Rs. 535 after the automaker's luxury unit Jaguar Land Rover reported record October sales.
Tata Motors in a press release said, "Jaguar Land Rover, the UK's leading manufacturer of premium luxury vehicles, reported its best ever October retail sales of 46,325 vehicles, up 11 per cent compared to October 2015."
12:18 p.m.: The stock markets edged lower in noon deals. The Sensex declined 28 points to 27,431 and Nifty fell 5 points to 8,492.
12:01 p.m.: Stock markets continue to trade on a flat note on caution ahead of US Presidential Elections. Sensex jumps 0.01 per cent to 27,459 and Nifty rises 4 points to 8,501.
11:43 a.m.: Sun Pharma was the top loser in the Nifty basket of shares, down 2.3 per cent to Rs 640. Maruti Suzuki, HCL Technologies, ITC, Aurobindo Pharma, Cipla and Adani Ports were also among the losers.
11:13 a.m.: The market breadth turns marginally bearish as 1,264 stocks decline while 1,135 advance.
11:02 a.m.: Broader markets face selling pressure. The BSE mid-cap index slips 0.14 per cent and small-cap index declines 0.01 per cent; Bajaj Holdings, Central Bank, Oberoi Realty, Shriram Transport Finance, Alkem Labs, Bharat Electronics, JSW Steel, Page Industries and Kansai Nerolac were among the laggards from the mid-cap space.
10:38 a.m.: Shares of India's biggest private sector lender ICICI Bank jumped as much as 3.14 per cent to hit intraday high of Rs 287.45 after the private sector lender reported better-than-expected net profit in the September quarter though its bad loans saw an uptick.
Mumbai-based ICICI Bank's reported a net profit of Rs 3,102 crore on net interest income of Rs 5,253 crore, compared with net profit of Rs 3,030 crore during the same period last year. The profit beat in the September quarter came on the back of lower tax expenses. Analysts polled by Reuters expected ICICI Bank to report net profit of Rs 2,565 crore.
10:24 a.m.: Shares of Varun Beverages, PepsiCo India's bottling franchise, made a weak debut on exchanges today. Its shares fell as much as 6 per cent to Rs 417.8 against its issue price of Rs 445.
Some analysts were cautious about the listing performance of Varun Beverages, citing high valuation and volatile earnings. At the upper end of its IPO price band of Rs 440-Rs 445, Varun Beverages shares were valued at 51.4 times its CY2016 estimated earnings per share, according to Angel Broking.
10:04 a.m.: Sensex and Nifty turned flat on the back of weakness in FMCG and pharma shares. The Sensex was up 27 points at 27,486 and Nifty jumped 10 points at 8,507.
From the FMCG space, ITC, Britannia Industries, Nestle India, Marico, United Spirits and Jyothy Labs were among the laggards.
9:29 a.m.: Sensex jumped nearly 100 points while the broader Nifty moved above its crucial psychological level of 8,500 in opening deals on the back of buying in oil & gas, banking and auto shares amid positive global markets.
As of 9:20 a.m., the Sensex was up 95 points at 27,554 and Nifty advanced 29 points to 8,526.
Meanwhile, other global markets were trading on a positive note after investor sentiment was buoyed by improving prospects for Democrat Hillary Clinton to win.
Clinton is seen by investors as offering greater certainty and stability, and, until last week's stumble, had been seen as the likely victor in Tuesday's presidential vote.
Back home, from the Nifty basket of shares 37 were advancing while 14 were declining.
ICICI Bank was among the top Nifty gainer, up 3 per cent after the private sector lender post market hours reported better than expected net profit of Rs 3,102 crore.
Tata Motors, BHEL, Hindalco, Tech Mahindra, Bharti Infratel, Asian Paints and NTPC were also among the gainers.
On the other hand, HCL Technologies, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Coal India, HDFC and HDFC Bank were also among the laggards.
The broader markets were broadly in-line with the benchmark indices.
8:28 a.m.: Sensex and Nifty are set to open higher in trades today tracking gains on Nifty futures traded on the Singapore Exchange amid strong global cues.
The Nifty futures traded on Singapore Exchange also known as the SGX Nifty was up 0.32 per cent or 27 points at 8,536.
Meanwhile, other Asian markets rose in early trade on Tuesday ahead of the US presidential election, with investor sentiment buoyed by improving prospects for Democrat Hillary Clinton to win.
Boosting Clinton's chances of winning, and markets globally, was the FBI's statement on Sunday standing by its July finding that Clinton was not guilty of criminal wrongdoing in her use of a private email server. That came after the Bureau announced on Oct. 28 it was reviewing additional emails relating to the server while Clinton was secretary of state, sending markets around the world tumbling.
Clinton is seen by investors as offering greater certainty and stability, and, until last week's stumble, had been seen as the likely victor in Tuesday's presidential vote.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.2 percent.
Overnight, Wall Street surged on the eve of the US presidential election, with Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton's prospects brightening after the FBI said it would not press criminal charges against her over the use of a private email server.
US stocks on Monday racked up their biggest one-day percentage gain since March 1, while a volatility measure recorded its biggest drop since late June.
The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 2.08 percent to end at 18,259.67 points and the S&P 500 surged 2.22 percent to 2,131.52. The Nasdaq Composite added 2.37 percent to 5,166.17.
Back home, foreign institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 311 crore and domestic institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 780 crore on Monday.
ICICI Bank will be in focus today after India's biggest private sector lender post market hours on Monday reported net profit of Rs 3,102 crore on the back of lower tax expenses while its provisions for bad loans surged more than seven times.
Bad loans as a percentage of outstanding loans rose to 6.82 per cent at the end of September from 5.87 per cent at the end of June. (With inputs from Reuters)
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