Barometers traded with small gains in early afternoon trade. All the sectoral indices on the NSE were in the green. Metal, pharma and PSU banks stocks rallied while FMCG shares saw profit selling.
At 12:29 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 109.43 points or 0.22% at 49,618.51. The Nifty 50 index added 51.3 points or 0.35% at 14,742.25.
In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index gained 0.72% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.38%.
The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 1939 shares rose and 714 shares fell. A total of 152 shares were unchanged.
The buying was supported by positive cues from other Asian stock markets, backed by surveys showing higher production across Asia's factories last month, and the the U. S. government's $2 trillion spending plan.