Private sector banking large-cap HDFC Bank led the gainers, up 3.21% to Rs 1,122, on a volume of 71,305 shares. ICICI Bank was up 1.53% to Rs 870, State Bank of India advanced 1% to Rs 1314, Karnataka Bank gained 3.89% to Rs 129.50, UTI Bank added 0.83% to Rs 475 and Kotak Mahindra Bank edged up 1.86% to Rs 380.

IT shares were in focus. Satyam Computers gained 0.73% to Rs 455, Wipro jumped 1.70% to Rs 593 and Infosys added 0.51% to Rs 2,168.20. The ADRs of the three software export leaders, Infosys, Satyam and Wipro, rose between 0.5% and 1.8% on Wednesday.

Software large-cap TCS surged 2.11% to Rs 1,189, after signing a 7-year deal worth $65 million for reorganising IT services of Somerfield. Somerfield is a leading UK-based, small-format food retailer.

Dr Reddy’s Lab advanced 2.91% to Rs 756, as ICICI Securities reiterated a buy on the stock, fairly valuing it at Rs 997.

Among non-Sensex stocks, Raipur Alloys & Steel jumped 20% to Rs 122.70, as Reliance Mutual Fund acquired 12.5 lakh shares at Rs 100.47 per share, vide block deals, on Wednesday. Gujarat Apollo Equipments surged 8.03% to Rs 197.10, as the company deferred the rights issue indefinitely on Tuesday.

Decliners

Tata Steel led the decliners, down 1.99% to Rs 467.50, as 4.36 lakh shares changed hands on BSE. Index heavy Reliance Industries lost 0.24% to Rs 1,246.10, on a volume of 4.84 lakh shares. Hindalco and Gujarat Ambuja declined 1.5% each to Rs 173 and Rs 144, respectively.

Oil & refinery stocks declined after the government announced a reduction in retail prices of diesel and petrol by Re 1 and Rs 2, respectively, on Wednesday. Indian Oil Corporation shed 3.74% to Rs 446, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation lost 2.72% to Rs 284 and Bharat Petroleum Corporation was off 2.88% to Rs 344.

Other news

Real estate developer Parsvnath Developers closed at Rs 540, up 80% from its listing price of Rs 240 and issue price of Rs 300 on the BSE.


9:45AM Stocks opened flat on mixed retail sales and rising oil.
Stocks were flat at opening after retailers posted mixed sales results for November and consumer spending rebounded, showing its biggest increase in three months in October. Blue-chip stocks edged higher, helped by same-store sales from retailers including solid numbers from Target Corp. (TGT: chart) and disappointing data from J.C. Penney Co. (JCP: chart). Wal-Mart (WMT: chart) weighed as it projected flat sales in December after reporting 0.1% decline in November same-store sales. Shares of Federated (FD: chart) rose 1.7% after the company posted a stronger-than-expected gain in November same-store sales. Shares of shoe retailer DSW Inc. shot up 13% after the company posted strong quarterly earnings and raised its yearly forecast. Crude oil prices rose to a two-month high, helping energy shares. Exxon (XOM: chart) shares gave the biggest lift to the S&P 500, up 1%, hitting an all-time high. The Dow Jones industrial average was up 14.26 points, or 0.12%, at 12,240.99. The Standard & Poor''s 500 Index was up 1.13 points, or 0.08%, at 1,400.61. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 0.15 points, or 0.01%, at 2,432.08.


9:30AM London benchmark index bounced back Thursday on bid speculation.
The FTSE 100 in London was 16.2 points, or 0.3%, higher at 6,101.4.

Advancers

Wolverhampton & Dudley was the main talking point in London market on Thursday. Shares in the pub company, which also owns Marston brewery, rose 4.3% to a record high on speculation of a 20-pound-a-share private equity bid approach.

QinetiQ Group, the defence and security group, led the advancers. Its shares climbed 7.6% after half-year numbers met expectations and the company said it was confident of meeting full-year earnings forecasts.

Hanson, the building materials group, advanced 1.8% on fresh bid rumors. Traders said a leading broker house was pushing a story that Cemex, the Mexican company that owns RMC, could turn attention to Hanson.

Energy stocks were also in demand as crude futures rose to a two-month high of $63.49 a barrel. Cairn Energy firmed 2.2% and BG Group gained 2.2%. Despite the rising oil price British Airways also climbed 1.9% on consolidation hopes.

Decliners

Kingfisher, the parent company of DIY retailer B&Q, was the biggest FTSE 100 decliner. Its shares dropped 3.2% unsettled by the costs of its store refurbishment program.