Sensex edges up; Bonds slip, IT stocks gain

Indian shares edged higher on Thursday, extending gains to a sixth straight session as IT firms advanced while bonds slid, sending the benchmark 10-year yield up as much as 6 basis points after oil prices hit a two-year high.

Analysts said the market was consolidating for want of fresh triggers, after the earnings season wound down, having hit record levels earlier this month.

Meanwhile, a rally in oil prices has continued to reduce expectations of rate cuts ahead of the central bank’s policy meeting early next month.

“There aren’t many domestic factors driving the markets. The inflow is mostly from domestic investors,” said Sangeeth V, institutional relationship manager at Paterson Securities.

The broader NSE Nifty was up 0.12 percent at 10,354.45 as of 0703 GMT while the benchmark BSE Sensex traded 0.11 percent higher at 33,598.14

On chart, as per Fibonacci projection levels, the NSE index faces a strong resistance near 10,400, the 38.2 percent projection of the uptrend from Sep. 28 low of 9687.55 to Nov. 6 high of 10,490.45.

Meanwhile, the benchmark 10-year bond yield was up 5 bps to 7.01 percent from Wednesday’s close after rising to as high as 7.02 percent.

IT stocks were among the major gainers, with Infosys Ltd rising as much as 2.9 percent. Over half a million Infosys shares changed hands in block deals on the NSE.

Thomas Cook (India) Ltd rose as much as 6.4 percent after divesting a part of Quess Corp Ltd to raise 6 billion rupees in order to reduce long term debt.

But state-owned banks fell after closing 1.26 percent higher on Wednesday following the cabinet’s approval to amend the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.