Budget 2016: Sensex, Nifty firm; ONGC tanks 7%, Wipro, NTPC down

Moneycontrol Bureau
The market is firm at the moment as more details on the Budget comes in. The Sensex is up 49.15 points or 0.2 percent at 23203.45 and the Nifty is up 21.75 points or 0.3 percent at 7051.50. About 1133 shares have advanced, 1184 shares declined, and 152 shares are unchanged.

ICICI Bank, Tata Steel, Reliance, Dr Reddy's Labs and SBI are top gainers while ONGC, Maruti, Wipro, NTPC and Infosys are losers in the Sensex. Bhairav Dalal, Partner - Tax, PwC India (real estate expert) says, "‘Housing for all’ seemed to be the flavour of the real estate part of budget today. The direct and indirect tax benefits for affordable housing should catapult the Smart city initiative. Additional deduction of interest would incentivise the first home buyers to own the houses. The REIT/InvIT market should finally take off now that the Finance Minister has granted Dividend Distribution Tax exemption. Overall, the budget should have a progressive effect on Real estate sector."