:::LALKAR GROUP::::

After opening sharply lower, key equity indices pared most of the early losses as they traded near the flat line in morning trade. The Nifty traded above the 17,550 level. While banks, metals and autos edged lower, IT and FMCG shares outperformed.

At 10:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 55.5 points or 0.09% at 59,071.39. The Nifty 50 index added 1.85 points or 0.01% to 17,587.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of market's expectation of volatility over the near term, jumped 6.53% to 16.23.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index were trading flat.

The market breadth was almost even. On the BSE, 1490 shares rose and 1509 shares fell. A total of 154 shares were unchanged.

COVID-19 Update:

Total COVID-19 confirmed cases worldwide stood at 228,502,047 with 4,691,332 deaths. India reported 318,181 active cases of COVID-19 infection and 445,133 deaths according to the data from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Bank index slipped 0.25% to 37,391.60, amid some bit of profit booking. The index advanced 3.67% in the past four sessions.

Punjab National Bank (down 0.88%), Federal Bank (down 0.78%), ICICI Bank (down 0.74%), SBI (down 0.70%), Bandhan Bank (down 0.52%), IndusInd Bank (down 0.35%), Axis Bank (down 0.30%) and HDFC Bank (down 0.29%) declined.

Concurrently, IDFC First Bank (up 1.02%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.01%), AU Small Finance Bank (up 0.68%) and RBL Bank (up 0.66%) advanced.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Rail Vikas Nigam jumped 5.15% to Rs 31.65. The company said that it has received Rs 1,034.90 crore contract from Madhya Pradesh Metro Rail Corporation for Indore Metro Rail project.

Lupin fell 1.51% to Rs 936.30. The pharmaceutical company said that the U.S. FDA concluded an inspection at the company's Goa facility in India. The inspection was carried out from 6 September 2021 to 18 September 2021 and closed with seven observations.

Welspun Corp rose 3.05% to Rs 125.10. The company has received multiple orders of approximately 120 KMT valuing close to Rs 1,400 crore most of which will be executed from its facilities in India. This includes an export order for a deep offshore pipeline project (of approximately 59 KMT) in Gulf-of-Mexico, USA. With these orders, the company's order book stands at 492 KMT valued at approximately Rs 4,700 crore, after considering execution up to August 2021.