FIRST TRADE: Sensex rises over 270 pts; Nifty above 21,500 amid broad-based buying; SAIL up over 2%

Stock market today: The Indian share market on Wednesday, December 27, edged higher amid broad-based buying. A rally in Asian peers, helped by hopes of interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve, also boosted investor sentiment on Dalal Street, though market watchers expect some profit booking to continue. Last seen, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 282.3 points, or 0.38 per cent, at 71,608.62, and the NSE Nifty was up 87.45 points, or 0.41 per cent, at 21,528.25.

"The resilience of the market even in the holiday season, which is normally devoid of much action, is an indication of its underlying bullishness. The global support for the market from the mother market, the US, where the S&P 500 is close to an all-time high, is significant. There are areas of concern that investors have to be careful about," said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

Meanwhile, in the broader market, Nifty Mid Cap 100 and Small Cap 100 opened over half a per cent higher each. High-beta Nifty Bank was up 0.27 per cent at 47,855.

Vijayakumar added that several initial public offers (IPOs) getting heavily oversubscribed are an indication of exuberance. There is a frenzy in the mid- and small-cap segments where valuations are excessive. The rally in the PSU space, in some segments like shipbuilding, is being driven by hope based on order inflows. The market is ignoring the execution challenges here.

BUZZING STOCKS

SAIL shares surged over 2 per cent on December 27, despite Citi reiterating a'sell' call on the stock.

Kansai Nerolac shares were up over 4 per cent after the paint company's board accepted the proposal for selling Lower Parel land.

SEAMEC shares were up over 1 per cent after the shipping company signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with HAL Offshore for the charter hire of the Offshore Support Vessel Sea Pearl.

Vishnu Prakash R Punglia shares were up over 6 per cent after the company secured an order worth Rs 899 crore.

SJVN shares were up over 2 per cent after the company's subsidiary SJVN Green Energy project bagged a project valued at Rs 550 crore.

Maithan Alloys shares were up over 10 per cent after the company agreed to acquire 10 lakh shares in NSE at a price consideration of Rs 324 crore.

Suraj Estate Developers shares were up over 2 per cent after the listing day's fall, global fund houses bought stakes in the entity.

South Indian Bank shares were up over 2 per cent as the company's board is slated to consider raising funds.

Conversely, Zydus Lifesciences shares were down nearly 1 per cent on BSE after the company's arm, Zydus Healthcare Ltd, was served with an income tax notice demand of Rs 284.58 crore for the assessment year 2023-2024.

GLOBAL MARKETS 

Asian stocks rose broadly on Wednesday, tracking a rally from Wall Street as investors latched on to the year-end optimism driven by expectations that the Federal Reserve could begin cutting rates as early as next March. 

(With inputs from agencies.)

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