The Indian markets have started today's session on a positive note. The benchmark indices opened below the breakeven mark but soon moved into the positive territory. Other key Asian markets are in the red with Indonesia (down 1%) leading the pack of losers. The US markets ended higher by 0.1% last Friday.
Currently in India, heavyweights from the BSE-Sensex are trading strong with FMCG majors attracting investors' interest. The BSE-Sensex is trading higher by around 45 points, while the NSE-Nifty is up by about 15 points. Buying interest is also being witnessed among mid and small cap stocks as the BSE-Midcap and BSE-Smallcap indices are trading higher by 0.6% and 0.7% respectively. The rupee is trading at 45.87 to the US dollar.
Software stocks have opened the day on a positive note. Gainers here include NIIT and Wipro. As per a leading business daily, TCS has approached the Karnataka government for a 100 acre parcel of land in Bangalore to build a new facility. The government is considering areas near the new international airport on the northern outskirts of the city for the purpose. It will fit in with the state government's plan of developing a new IT hub called Information Technology Investment Region (ITIR) spread over 12,000 acres. It is part of the central government's initiative to promote technology industry in India. Under this initiative, the state government will ensure all the physical infrastructure and utilities while the central government will facilitate the development of national highways, airport and rail links. Karnataka would be the first state to establish an ITIR.
Auto stocks have opened the day on a strong note. Gainers here include Tata Motors and Hero Honda. As per a leading business daily, Tata Motors is planning a hike in the price of its passenger cars, Indica and Indigo, from next month. This will help the company minimise the impact of rising input costs, especially tyres. It may be noted that this is not an isolated instance in the Indian auto industry. Another key player, Hyundai Motors, hiked the prices of its vehicles by up to 1.2% from this month. In fact, Maruti Suzuki had announced an increase in prices in August itself. It had hiked the prices of all of its models, except the Alto, by up to Rs 7,500.
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