Live Market Updates: Nifty holds 8900 as FM prepares for Budget speech; IT weak

Moneycontrol Bureau

The Sensex is up 206.57 points or 0.7 percent at 29426.69 and the Nifty up 57.65 points or 0.6 percent at 8902.25. About 1396 shares have advanced, 731 shares declined, and 163 shares are unchanged.

Cipla, Hero, Infosys, TCS and Bharti Airtel are top losers in the Sensex . Among the losers are Tata Steel, BHEL, GAIL, L&T and ICICI Bank.

All eyes are on the fiscal deficit number. FM Arun Jaitley is expected to remain committed to the path of fiscal consolidation. The government is likely to meet the fiscal deficit target of 4.1 percent in FY15 and aim for 3.6 percent in FY16. Gross market borrowings are likely to inch up to Rs 6.23 lakh crore in FY16. On the taxation front, it is expected to see a roadmap towards implementation of GST. Capital markets may see a reduction in securities transaction tax.