Heavyweights lift Nifty to a new high

Markets opened on a strong note with the benchmark indices up 0.5% each in opening deals. The gains were lead by names like ONGC, RIL, ICICI Bank and L&T.



At 0918 hrs, the Sensex as up 166 points at 27,193 and the Nifty hit a new high with the index scaling a high of 8,143.50 in the opening trades. The earlier high for the index was at 8,141.90.



The broader markets were upbeat with both the small and midcap indices up over 0.5% each.



All the sectoral indices started in the green. Oil & Gas index up 1% was the top sectoral gainer along with Bankex, Health Care and Power indices up over 0.7% each.



The only losers among Sensex-30 were auto majors Maruti and M&M down 0.5% and 0.2% and Coal India down 0.3%.



ONGC, GAIL, L&T, Cipla, Dr Reddys, ICICI Bank, TCS and SBI up 1-2% were the top gainers.



The market breadth was very positive on BSE. 1,182 stocks advanced while 376 stocks declined.



Asian Markets



 Asian shares edged down on Monday, taking little comfort from mixed Chinese trade data, while sterling's decline after a poll showed rising support for Scottish independence helped bolster the dollar.



China's exports rose more than forecast in August while imports unexpectedly fell, pushing the trade surplus to a record high for the second consecutive month and underlining the challenges of sluggish domestic demand.



 Data on Friday showed US nonfarm payrolls grew by only 142,000 last month, far below the 225,000 forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.



The downbeat jobs report suggested the Federal Reserve will hold off on hiking interest rates anytime soon, and helped the S&P 500 hit a fresh closing high.



MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.2%, while the Nikkei stock average climbed about 0.2%, shrugging off data that showed Japanese economy fell into a deeper hole in the second quarter.



Indonesia's Jakarta Composite Index, meanwhile, hit a record high in early trading, besting the previous record set in May 2013.