India’s Sensex mixed as energy stocks advance, ITC falls

Mumbai: India’s stock benchmark gave up early gains as energy stocks advanced and ITC Ltd retreated.

The S&P BSE Sensex was little changed at 31,204.84 as of 10.42am in Mumbai, after climbing as much as 0.4 per cent. Reliance Industries Ltd led gains with a 1.9 per cent advance and provided the biggest boost to the gauge. Oil & Natural Gas Corp. also rose. ITC, which set a record yesterday, fell 0.8 per cent and was the biggest drag on the measure.

The S&P BSE Oil & Gas Index led advances among the 13 sub-indexes compiled by BSE Ltd. while 10 sub-groups fell. The energy gauge was poised for its biggest gain in over a month even as crude oil prices fell Tuesday. The index had dropped 8.6 per cent over the past two months, tracking a 6.7 per cent decline in crude.

“Energy stocks have been beaten down and had been undervalued for sometime now,” said Harsh Dole, Mumbai-based analyst at India Infoline Ltd. “While there are a number of positives, the market is most likely catching up.”