Markets Trade Higher, Bajaj Auto Top Gainer

Benchmark indices opened the day marginally higher, as Asian markets were all trading higher. It was the third successive day of gains for the Indian markets. The Nifty was trading with gains of 80 points, while the Sensex rallied 240 points. Shares in Axis Bank moved higher after the Bank reported a net profit of Rs 2,677 crore in Q4 FY21.

HDFC AMC on the other hand saw its stock move marginally lower after the asset management company reported a net profit of Rs 316.1 crore in Q4 FY21 versus Rs 250 crore in Q4 FY20. Among the early Nifty losers in trade were Britannia, HDFC and HDFC Bank.

"Going ahead, Indian markets are likely to continue with its volatility as the earnings season gets in full swing while COVID-19 cases continue to be very high. Market is continuously reacting to government's course of action along with progress on vaccination drive. Investors would actively track management commentaries in their post result concalls, given the current pandemic situation. Global markets would be cautious ahead of the US Fed's monetary policy outcome on Wednesday. Even President Joe Biden is expected to spell out his infrastructure spending plan, and the tax hikes to pay for it which could set the market tone for near term," Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services said.