Opening bell: Despite weak global cues, benchmark market indices open higher!

The Asian stocks are trading lower on Friday. The US market fell by more than 1.5 per cent yesterday.

The Asian stocks are trading lower on Friday. The US market fell by more than 1.5 per cent yesterday. Buying was seen by both foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) worth Rs 3,088.73 crore as well as domestic institutional investors (DIIs) of Rs 1,145.28 crore in the Indian markets on March 31. The crude oil fell below the 100 dollar mark and is trading at $ 99.96 per barrel. The rupee has depreciated this morning and is trading at 75.92 against the dollar.   

BSE Sensex opened on a positive note i.e. up by 121 points at 58,689.37 levels. Following this, BSE MidCap also moved upwards by 164 points and is trading at 24,272.17. BSE SmallCap has soared 331 points and is trading at 28,547.19 levels. The stocks trading in the green on BSE Sensex are NTPC, Power Grid Corporation of India, Tata Steel, Mahindra & Mahindra, and HDFC Bank.   

Nifty 50 index, after a sloppy opening in the green today, is up by 36 points and is now trading at 17,501.20 levels. Bank Nifty has also gained 192 points and is trading at 36,567.35 levels. The gainers on Nifty 50 are BPCL, JSW Steel, Tata Steel, Power Grid Corporation of India, and NTPC.  

The market outlook is positive as out of 2,864 stocks traded, 2,113 stocks have advanced whereas 651 stocks declined in the morning session. Around 184 stocks are locked up in the upper circuit while 94 stocks are locked in the lower circuit today. There are 72 stocks that are trading at their 52-week highs and 16 stocks are at 52-week lows.