The key equity benchmarks traded with minor gains in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty managed to rise above the 18,250 level. Private bank shares extended gains for third consecutive trading session.

At 14:26 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 107.23 points or 0.17% to 61,868.56. The Nifty 50 index gained 21.10 points or 0.12% to 18,287.05.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.04% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index up 0.017%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,697 shares rose and 1,743 shares fell. A total of 145 shares were unchanged.

On the political front, the Karnataka Assembly Elections is being held today, 10 May 2023, in a single phase for 224 constituencies. The exit poll results will be declared shortly after the voting is over. The Election Commission of India will declare the election results on May 13.

Numbers to track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper fell 0.06% to 7.042 as compared with previous close of 7.046.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee slightly edged lower against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 82.06, compared with its close of 82.0625 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2023 settlement lost 0.30% to Rs 61,232.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.09% to 101.69.

The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.15% to 3.517.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for July 2023 settlement lost $1.01 or 1.30% to $76.43 a barrel.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty private bank rose 0.39% to 21,959.25. The index has advanced 2.24% in three trading session.

IndusInd Bank (up 2.39%), Bandhan Bank (up 0.58%), HDFC Bank (up 0.38%), Federal Bank (up 0.08%) and Axis Bank (up 0.06%) advanced.

On the other hand, RBL Bank (down 0.92%), IDFC First Bank (down 0.78%) and ICICI Bank (down 0.24%) declined.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Krishna Defence and Allied Industries jumped 3.52% after the company received an order from Ministry of Defence (MoD) for supply of special heating equipment worth Rs 63.48 crore.

Cera Sanitaryware rose 1.98% after the company reported 11.64% jump in net profit of Rs 62.93crore on 20.9% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 530.38 crore in Q4 FY23 over Q4 FY22.

Hatsun Agro Product declined 1.15% after the dairy product manufacturer reported 39.06% decline in net profit to Rs 24.99 crore despite of 10% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 1,789.46 crore in Q4 FY23 over Q4 FY22.