Sensex, Nifty volatile; Future Retail jumps 5%, Nikkei rises 2%

Moneycontrol Bureau12:59 pm Market Update: Volatility continued in afternoon trade. The Sensex gained 17.03 points at 27799.28 and the Nifty rose 1.90 points to 8574.45.About 1346 shares declined against 1088 advancing shares on the BSE.12:40 pm Europe opens: European stocks opened lower as the US dollar strengthened after hawkish comments from US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen in a closely watched speech last Friday.

The pan-European STOXX 600 was down 0.32 percent. London's FTSE 100 is closed for a public holiday.

Yellen said the case for a rate hike had "strengthened in recent months" pointing towards the "solid performance" of the labor market and positive outlook on economic activity, at a speech at the annual Jackson Hole gathering of central bankers on Friday.12:20 pm Interview: Shree Renuka Sugars share are trading higher on news that the Judicial Protection Law has approved a rejig plan presented by the company's Brazilian arm.

Speaking about the same to CNBC-TV18, Narendra Murkumbi of Shree Renuka Sugars said the banks were ready to take 70 percent haircut and exit with 30 percent of the face value of the debt.

Murukumbi said the company was not putting in any new money at the moment, but in fact was hiving off one of the units of the Brazilian subsidiary.Also read - Tata Motors up 5%: Analysts bullish but forex worries Jhunjhunwala12:00 pm Market Check

Equity benchmarks as well as broader markets remained volatile and have been moving in a tight range as investors remained sideways after pricing in all events.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was up 18.60 points at 27800.85 and the 50-share NSE Nifty gained 3.35 points at 8575.90.

Multi-format retailer Future Retail shares are locked at 5 percent upper circuit at Rs 161.05. Retail business of the Future Group has been merged with Bharti Retail and then changed the name to Future Retail. Under the scheme of arrangement, the company was divided into Future Enterprises, which is a backend business, and Bharti Retail that is a fronted business.

Japanese shares climbed, boosted by a weaker yen, while other Asia markets put in a mixed performance. The benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 2.3 percent, while the Topix added 2.01 percent.

Oil prices fell over 1 percent as Iraq's production rose and as Iran said it would only cooperate in producer talks to freeze output if fellow exporters recognized its right to fully regain market share. International Brent crude oil futures were trading at USD 49.29 per barrel, down 1.26 percent, from their previous close. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 1.49 percent, at USD 46.93 a barrel.

Prices have fallen by over 3.5 percent since their August peaks.