Sensex, Nifty start on positive note amid sustained foreign fund inflow; TCS, Coal India, HCL Tech rise up to 4.12%

Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmarks started on a positive note Monday led by gains in IT bellwether TCS, amid sustained foreign fund inflow and positive global cues. After rising over 100 points in the early session, the 30-share index was trading 67.91 points or 0.18 percent higher at 38,835.02. The NSE Nifty was trading 21.20 points, or 0.18 percent, up at 11,664.65 in the early session. During the past week, the Sensex fell 95.12 points or 0.24 percent, while the Nifty shed 22.5 points or 0.19 percent. Top gainers in the Sensex pack include Tata Motors, TCS, Coal India, HCL Tech, Vedanta, Tata Steel, Hero MotoCorp, ITC, Kotak Bank, Asian Paints, IndusInd Bank and Axis Bank, rising up to 4.12 percent. TCS led the gains in early trade after the company Friday reported a 17.7 percent growth in consolidated net profit at Rs 8,126 crore for the March 2019 quarter. According to Rajesh Gopinathan, chief executive officer and managing director at TCS, this is the strongest revenue growth that the firm have had in the last fifteen quarters. [caption id=“attachment_4748931” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters.[/caption] On the other hand, Infosys was the top loser, shedding 2.73 percent on BSE. The IT major Friday posted a 10.5 percent rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 4,078 crore for the March 2019 quarter, and guided towards 7.5-9.5 percent growth in revenue for FY 2019-20. Bharti Airtel, Sun Pharma, M&M, ONGC and Maruti were among the other losers on Sensex. Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased equity worth Rs 897.45 crore on Friday, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold equities to the tune of Rs 15.99 crore, provisional data available with stock exchanges showed. The rupee appreciated marginally to 69.17 against the US dollar in early trade. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, was 0.13 percent lower at $71.46 per barrel. Elsewhere in Asia, benchmark equity indices in Shanghai, Tokyo and Seoul were positive in early trade.