Opening Bell: Nifty edges past 16,150, Sensex gains around 400 points; IT, Metal stocks shine

Taking cues from the Asian markets, the domestic benchmarks opened on a strong note on Monday. The broader Nifty50 rose and barometer Sensex gained more than half per cent each to open at 16,151.40 and 54,069.30 respectively.  

Following the benchmarks, the broader market indices Nifty Midcap and Smallcap were seen trading higher by 0.8% and 0.9% respectively.  

On the sectoral front, Nifty IT, Metal and Realty gained the most as all sectoral indices turned green in the opening trade.  

High volatility in the market is likely to continue in the near-term with erratic action from FIIs, who bought on 3 days this month and sold on other days, and sustained buying on dips by retail and DIIs, said V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services. 

A significant market trend is the change in leadership from IT and banking to consumption driven FMCG and autos, he underlined.  

"The 6-month Nifty IT index return is - 31.79% and the Nifty Bank Index is down 9.61% during this period. In sharp contrast to this, Nifty FMCG Index is up 9.74% and Nifty Auto Index is up by 6.17% during this period," he pointed.  

As per the expert, IT is weak on fears of a possible US recession impacting tech spending by companies. Leading bank stocks are weak due to sustained FII selling, despite their improving fundamentals, he says.  

"FMCG and autos are benefiting from the recent commodity price crash. Capital goods also are doing well on improving capex prospects. Investors can consider slightly restructuring their portfolios in the light of the leadership changes in the market," the expert advised. 

Earlier, minutes before opening of the Indian market, SGX Nifty traded higher by 158 points to 16,198 on the Singaporean exchange.  

Japanese Nikkei 225, Hang Seng Index at the Hong Kong Exchange and Chinese Shanghia Composite gained between 0.5% to 2.5% around the same time.