Positive global cues, RIL power markets

The Nifty closed above 5,100 led by positive global cues and surge in heavyweight Reliance Industries. India's largest private sector refiner saw a 3-4% gain in trading today. The sensex gained 158 points and closed at 17,180.

Here is a verbatim transcript of Udayan Mukherjee’s comments on CNBC-TV18. Also see the accompanying video.

The week started on a positive note for the Nifty, which added another 50 points to head past 5,100. The Reliance stock got a thumbs up on acquisition news, even as Bharti led yet another slide in telecom stocks. Global markets started the week on a firm note. Asian and European markets traded strong today.

Reliance got a thumbs up today from the market, perhaps the first stock which after announcing a very large global acquisition moved up on the next day. The market seems to like that announcement and sees that as a strategic fit. The Reliance stock hit nearly Rs 2,200 today, up 3%. It lent quite a bit of shoulder to the Nifty, the reason why it could climb to the 5,100 mark.

Largecap names like Tata Steel and SAIL in the metals universe, ITC in FMCG had a very good session. ICICI Bank was the one which stood out in the banking space today and HCL in technology.

The disappointment was telecom once again. The tariff wars just don’t seem to get over and Bharti has now crumbled to Rs 275. This is a big drop for that stock. Idea and Reliance Communications also got hurt today in the process.

In infrastructure, JP associates also didn’t have a great session of trade.