Sensex hovers around 28000; NTPC, Cipla, Aurobindo shares surge

Moneycontrol Bureau

12:40 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened lower in a choppy week of trade so far, as investors tread cautiously ahead of a key speech by US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen on Friday.

 The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.55 percent in early trade.

Yellen is set to deliver a speech at the annual gathering of central bankers at Jackson Hole, Wyoming, in which investors will be listening for hints on the timing of a US interest rate rise.12:20 pm USFDA nod: Jubilant Life Sciences today said it has received approval from the US health regulator for Telmisartan Tablets, used for the treatment of hypertension, in the American market.

In a BSE filing, the company said "it has received Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) final approval for Telmisartan Tablets, USP 20,40 and 80mg, the generic version of Micardis Tablets of Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc".

As on June 30, 2016, Jubilant Life Sciences had a total of 770 filings for Oral Solids of which 578 have been approved in various regions globally.

"This includes 70 ANDAs filed in the US, of which 44 have been approved and 104 filings in Europe," it said.

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Equity benchmarks remained rangebound in noon trade ahead of expiry of August derivative contracts. Investors globally also waited for the speech by Federal Reserve Chief Janet Yellen at Jackson Hole.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 2.25 points at 27987.96 and the Nifty fell 2.40 points to 8630.20 whereas the broader markets continued to outperform by rising half a percent. About 1424 shares advanced against 1006 declining shares on the BSE.

Infosys, Maruti, NTPC, Aurobindo and Cipla gained 1-4 percent while Lupin, HUL and Tata Steel fell over a percent.

Markets in Asia finished mixed, as traders remained in a wait-and-see mode ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen's speech at Jackson Hole on Friday. Japanese shares rose, with the Nikkei 225 finishing up 99.94 points, or 0.61 percent, at 16,597.30, while across the Korean Strait, the Kospi closed down 6.17 points, or 0.3 percent, at 2,043.76.