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Reliance and oil marketing companies are leading the rise in Indian shares

Indian shares rose Wednesday, led primarily by the heavyweight Reliance Industries following Goldman Sachs's announcement of a high Street target price. Oil marketing companies also saw gains as crude oil prices dropped and boosted hopes for sustained refining margins.

As of 10:27 a.m. IST the blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 rose 0.64% to 22144.70, while BSE Sensex climbed 0.65% to 72942.63.

Pramod Gubbi said that the Nifty should remain at 22,000 for the rest of the month. The earnings season, which begins in mid-April, will likely provide the next direction, he added.

Gubbi said that the large-cap space is attractive from the perspective of valuations, and the allocations to large caps from small and mid-caps continue to maintain the benchmarks' resilience.

The broader, more domestically-focussed small- and mid-caps gained 0.6% and 0.5%, respectively, on the day. They have fallen 4.8% and 0.75 %, respectively, in March while the Nifty is up 0.5%.

All 13 major sectors registered gains. Reliance Industries' 2.3% increase to 2,948.40 Rupees boosted the energy and oil &gas sectors by 1.4% and 1% respectively.

Goldman Sachs has raised its price target for Reliance to 3,400 rupees on the Street, citing favorable valuations and an expected earnings boost as capital expenditures peak.

Oil marketing companies Bharat Petroleum (Indian Oil), Hindustan Petroleum (Hindustan) and Bharat Petroleum (Hindustan) gained around 2% each, as crude oil prices continue to fall, supporting their refining margins.

ABB India (which provides technology automation products) jumped 6%, to 6,286.80 Rupees. UBS increased its price target, to an all-time high of 7,550 Rupees.

Kotak Institutional Equities, which initiated coverage by recommending a "buy," called Gravita India the leader in the domestic industry of recycling. (Reporting and editing by Sonia Cheema, Savio D’Souza and Hritam Mukerjee in Bengaluru)

(source: Reuters)