Sensex up 78 points; capital goods, metal stocks shine

Mumbai, April 21:  

The Sensex and the Nifty were trading marginally in the green in the absence of directional cues. 

At 11.15 a.m., the 30-share BSE index Sensex was up 77.88 points or 0.34 per cent at 22,706.72 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty was up 21.5 points or 0.32 per cent at 6,800.90. 

Barring IT, TECk and FMCG, all other BSE sectoral indices were trading in the green. Among them, capital goods and metal indices gained the most by 2.04 per cent, 1.35 per cent, respectively, followed by auto 0.98 per cent and consumer durables 0.86 per cent. On the other hand, IT index was down 0.55 per cent, followed by TECk 0.24 per cent and FMCG 0.1 per cent. 

BHEL, L&T, SSLT, Maruti and Hindalco were the top five Sensex gainers, while the major losers were Wipro, HUL, HDFC and Infosys. 

Thin trading was witnessed in the Asian markets as several markets remained closed for the Easter holiday. Also, investors remained subdued due to tensions in Ukraine. 

Tensions in Ukraine, signs of slowing growth in China and uncertainty over when the US Federal Reserve would begin to tighten the interest rates have dampened the global sentiment in recent weeks, although Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's comments last week helped soothe investors' nerves.