The RBI this month surprised the Street with a status quo on policy ratesHighlightsBuying in banking, auto, metal sectors push markets higher Financial stocks rise after Cabinet clears easier lending rules for NBFCs Official data on retail inflation, factory output due after market hours Domestic stock markets have started Thursday's session on a positive note tracking gains in Asian peers which rose to a one-month high.
The S-P BSE Sensex index moved up as much as 224.39 points to touch 40,636.96 in the first hour of trade, and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark climbed to as high as 11,977.30, up 67.15 points from the previous close.
Buying across most sectors - led by banking, auto, metal and consumer goods stocks - supported the markets.
Analysts awaited key macroeconomic data due for release on Wednesday for more clues on the monetary policy cycle in the coming months.
At 9:52 am, the Sensex traded 168.33 points - or 0.42 per cent - higher at 40,580.90 while the Nifty was up 53.45 points - or 0.45 per cent - at 11,963.60.Top percentage gainers on the 50-scrip index at the time were Yes Bank, Tata Motors, Cipla, UPL and Vedanta, trading between 1.91 per cent and 4.67 per cent higher.On the other hand, Zee Entertainment, ONGC, Bharti Airtel, HDFC and Infosys - down between 0.27 per cent and 1.71 per cent - were the top laggards on the index.
Forty one stocks on the Nifty 50 index traded higher at the time.HDFC Bank, Larsen - Toubro, HUL and SBI were the top contributors to the gain in Sensex, together accounting for a 90-point rise in the index.Banking stocks were in focus after the Union cabinet approved easier lending rules for shadow banks to help them get more access to funds.
The Nifty Bank index - comprising stocks of 12 major lenders in the country - rose as much as 0.60 per cent.The financial services sector has the maximum weightage of 41 per cent in the Nifty 50 basket of shares.Equities in other Asian markets rose to one-month highs after the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged as expectedbut indicated interest rates would remain on hold, which nudged Wall Street stocks higher.MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan climbed 0.8 per cent to the highest since November 11 and Japan's Nikkei stock index rose 0.18 per cent.US stock futures edged up 0.1 per cent.The US central bank signalled rate settings were likely to remain accommodative, but the imminent UK election and a deadline for US-China trade talks kept investors cautious.The S-P BSE Sensex index had on Wednesday ended 172.69 points - or 0.43 per cent - higher at 40,412.57 and the broader NSE Nifty benchmark settled at 11,910.15, up 53.35 points - or 0.45 per cent - from its previous close.The government will release data on consumer inflation and industrial production after market hours on Thursday, and on wholesale inflation at noon the next day.The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) this month surprised the Street with a status quo on policy rates.
The central bank primarily tracks consumer inflation data while formulating monetary policy.