BSE Sensex hits 3 month high amid Karnataka poll results,HDFC shares up

The index had gained over 313 points in the previous two sessions.

BSE Sensex gains 0.42 percent,while the broader NSE index is 0.34 percent higher,after hitting new three-month highs earlier in the day,on buoyant foreign inflows and higher Asian shares.

* Foreign portfolio investors have so far bought Indian stocks worth $12.34 billion in 2013.

* Asian shares rose on Wednesday on another record high for U.S. stocks and unexpectedly strong German industrial orders.

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* Housing Development Finance Corp Ltd gains 2 percent ahead of its March-quarter earnings later in the day.

* IT stocks such as Infosys Ltd up 0.6 percent,heading for a seventh session of gains on value buying,after 22.6 percent slump in April on weak results and guidance.

* Among other IT stocks,Tata Consultancy Services Ltd also up 0.4 percent,while Wipro Ltd gains 0.2 percent.

* Traders say Indian top court’s decision on coal allocation scam and results of polls in Karnataka to dictate market trends in the near term.

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Earlier,BSE Sensex extended gains for the third-straight day by adding nearly 82 points in early trade today on continued foreign funds inflow amid a firming trend in the global markets.

The 30-share barometer rose by 81.83 points,or 0.41 per cent,to 19,970.78 with stocks of realty,metal and IT sectors leading the gains. The index had gained over 313 points in the previous two sessions.

Similarly,the wide-based National Stock Exchange index,Nifty moved up by 21.55 points,or 0.36 per cent,to 6,065.10.

Brokers said sentiments on the domestic bourses continues to be buoyed by sustained buying by foreign funds and retail investors,driven by a firming trend in the Asian region after US markets surged to new record high in yesterday’s trade.

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Meanwhile in Asia,Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose by 0.72 per cent,while Japan’s Nikkei up by 1.35 per cent in the early trade. The US Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.58 per cent to close above 15,000 for the first time in yesterday’s trade as investor optimism about the US economy.

GLOBAL MARKETS ROUNDUP

* Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange are 0.46 percent up and the MSCI-Asia Pacific index excluding Japan is 0.65 percent higher.

* Asian shares rose on Wednesday on another record high for U.S. stocks and unexpectedly strong German industrial orders,as investors await the first batch of April data from China for the latest take on the region’s powerhouse economy.

* The Dow closed above 15,000 for the first time on Tuesday and the S&P 500 ended at another record high,extending the market’s rally as more investors rushed to join the party and German industrial data beat expectations.

FACTORS TO WATCH

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* India’s southern state of Karnataka will declare election results,which will indicate the political mood ahead of national elections in 2014.

* A decision on the fate of India’s largest copper smelter,run by Sterlite Industries Ltd,could be made at an environmental court hearing.

* India’s Supreme Court will hear the market regulator’s plea for the arrest of embattled Sahara boss Subrata Roy and two other group directors in the regulator’s ongoing battle with the mysterious conglomerate over its allegedly illegal bond scheme.

* India’s Supreme Court will resume hearing on an appeal by top telecommunications carrier Bharti Airtel challenging a government ban on its pacts with two other carriers to offer 3G services beyond its licensed zones.

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* India’s top court to hear a case on the government’s alleged interference in the investigating agency’s report on the coal scam.

* Earnings of Housing Development Finance Corporation Ltd ,Lupin Ltd and Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd

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