The key equity barometers traded with minor gains in early trade. Nifty opened at 22742 and hit a high of 22787 in first half hour of trade. Nifty IT and Nifty 50 shares rose, while Nifty Metal and Nifty Realty shares fell.

At 09:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, posted modest gains of 189.70 points or 0.26% to 73,439.09. The Nifty 50 index edged higher by 23.55 points or 0.10% to 22,711.20.

The broader market failed to keep pace with frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index recorded sharp losses of 1.52% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index posted steep losses of 1.76%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1100 shares advanced and 2687 shares retreated. A total of 201 shares were unchanged.

Nifty IT index rose 2.32% to 32827. The index has soared 12.24% in last one month and declined 11.08% over last one year. TCS, inching higher 3.44%, led the gainers followed by Infosys, up 2.44% and Coforge, gaining 2%, respectively. All 10 constituents are advancing today.

Nifty 50 index posted modest gains of 0.10% to 22711. The index has slipped by 2.75% in last one month and fell 12.37% over last one year. TCS, adding 3.44%, led the gainers followed by Infosys, edging up 2.44% and Reliance Industries, up 1.89%, respectively. Out of 50 index constituents, 19 are reporting gains today.

Nifty Metal index slipped 1.56%. The index has declined 9.18% in last one month and jumped 15.20% over last one year. Hindustan Zinc, edging lower 2.86%, led the losers followed by Natl. Aluminium, slipping 2.59% and Hindustan Copper, losing 2.56%, respectively. All 15 index constituents are reporting losses today.

In NIFTY500, Cyient is the top gainer today, skyrocketing 8.36% to Rs 1240.20. The counter is modestly lower by 5.61% in last one year. It recorded an average volume quantity of 71075.40 in last five sessions compared to 54527.81 over last one month.

Asian markets retreated on Friday. China’s Shanghai composite is significantly lower by 1.20%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is up 0.49%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 is lower by 0.97%.