Sensex ends up 263 points; Hindalco gains, Dhanlaxmi soars 15%

03:50 pm World market check
World shares and hard-hit Russian assets rebounded after Russia's president ordered troops in military exercises to return to base in what was seen as a dampening down of immediate tensions in the East-West crisis over Ukraine, reports Reuters.

Russian stocks and the rouble gained while gold and the safe-haven Japanese yen fell sharply after President Vladimir Putin ordered back troops that took part in military exercises in central and western Russia.

There was no word, however, on Russian forces that have effectively occupied much of Crimea, and financial assets failed to retrace the entirety of the sharp moves seen globally on Monday.

03:40 pm Market closing
Just as Ukraine crisis subsided with Russian President Putin ordering millitary troops back to base, the market gathered momentum and ended with superub gains.

The Sensex was up 263.08 points or 1.26 percent at 21209.73, and the Nifty ended up 76.50 points or 1.23 percent at 6297.95.  About 1614 shares advanced, 1063 shares declined, and 134 shares were unchanged.

Hindalco gained 8 percent. Other gainers in the Sensex were Sesa Strelite, ICICI Bank, GAIL and Axis Bank.

Among the top losers in the Sensex were Sun Pharma and Dr Reddy's Labs.

03:30 pm Rupee check: The rupee rose to 61.91-92 against the dollar versus Monday's close of 62.04, after falling to 62.15 in early sessions.

Most emerging Asian currencies turned higher after Russia's president ordered troops in military drills in central and western Russia to return to base, increasing hopes of a peaceful solution in Ukraine.

03:15 pm Market outlook
Dipan Mehta, Member, BSE & NSE feels the rally seen in the India could be on expectations of a change at the Centre and this could be supporting our market and attracting fund flows into India.

Stock specific he feels over the past two years it has been evident that there has been a shift to quality stocks - to companies that have managed better balance sheet, have low debt and those that have been transparent communication with investors and at the same time have delivered growth.

03:05 pm Curb on gold import?
Commerce Minister Anand Sharma said he had taken up with the finance ministry the issue of easing some curbs on gold imports imposed last year to narrow the current account deficit, reports Reuters.

"We have to have a balance. Over-regulation, too much of tariffs, lead to another problem ... of smuggling," Sharma told a news conference.

"We have to ensure adequate availability of gold for the gems and jewellery industry, which is a very important sector for our exports," he said.

02:59pm Market Update
The market is on a strong footing as the Nifty touched the 6300 level for the first time since January 24, 2014.

The Sensex rose 240.77 points or 1.15 percent to 21187.42 and the Nifty climbed 72.10 points or 1.16 percent to 6293.55. About 1531 shares have advanced, 1051 shares declined, and 141 shares are unchanged.

02:50pm Elantas Beck slips over 3% on OFS
Promoter, Elantas GmbH today will sell 2,69,109 lakh equity shares (representing 3.39 percent of total paid up capital) of Elantas Beck through offer for sale.

The company has fixed floor price as Rs 450 per equity share.

The sale of shares by promoter is to meet the minimum public shareholding norms, wherein the listed (private) company should have at least 25 percent public shareholding in the company. Promoter holds 78.39 percent stake in the company.

02:40pm Bharti Airtel in focus
Airtel Networks Kenya, a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel, has sought an approval from the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK), to acquire the telecommunications licenses and subscribers of Essar Telecom Kenya Limited, which operates under the brand name 'yuMobile', the company said in its filing.

The proposed arrangement envisages over 2.7 million customers of Essar Telecom Kenya becoming part of Airtel Kenya's mobile network. The proposed association will undergo seamless integration once definitive agreements are signed, and requisite regulatory and statutory approvals are received.

Bharti Airtel is trading at Rs 287.70, up 0.42 percent on the BSE.

02:30pm Tata Communications on buyers' radar
Tata Communications rallied 4 percent as CNBC-TV18 reports quoting sources that the government is likely to have given nod for Neotel deal.

Neotel is South African subsidiary of Tata Communications.

It is learnt that Tata Communications and Vodacom deal is in final stages and announcement of the same is likely soon.

The value of deal, wherein Vodacom will buy out Neotel stake from Tata Communications, is pegged at USD 500 million, sources say.

Tata Communications holds nearly 67 percent in Neotel.

This deal with Vodacom will help Tata Communications bring down debt.

02:20pm Dhanlaxmi Bank on fire
Shares of Dhanlaxmi Bank rallied 20 percent after the board of directors has approved to allot 5,96,50,000 equity shares of Rs 10/- each at a premium of Rs 29 per equity share aggregating to an amount of Rs 232.6 crore through preferential allotment.

To take necessary approval from the shareholders, an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) of the bank is scheduled to be held on March 29, 2014 at 11.00 am at Vadakke Samooham, Kalyanamandapam, Thrissur - 680 001.

02:10pm Market Expert
So far the Indian markets have been resilient to the ongoing global crisis because the correction seen in the global markets too is not of the magnitude seen in earlier global crisis says Dipan Mehta, Member, BSE & NSE in an interview to CNBC-TV18.

However, he adds if it were to get ugly wherein crude would shoot up by 15-20 percent, if there was further sell off in emerging markets and EM currencies then Indian market would certainly be impacted.

Moreover, the rally seen in the India could be a hope rally build on expectations of a change at the Centre and this could be supporting our market and attracting fund flows into India, says Mehta.

Stock specific he feels over the past two years it has been evident that there has been a shift to quality stocks - to companies that have managed better balance sheet, have low debt and those that have been transparent communication with investors and at the same time have delivered growth.

According to him the correction seen in pharma stocks on back of the geo-political issues in Ukraine is an opportunity to buy into because going forward too there is growth coming in for pharma cos from US and developed East-European markets. ''This correction should certainly be bought into for investors looking to increase pharma exposure,'' he adds.

02:00pm Equity benchmarks maintained strong momentum in afternoon trade, tracking 1 percent rally in European markets after reports suggest that Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered troops sent last week to return to their bases.

The Sensex climbed 229.78 points or 1.10 percent to 21176.43 and the Nifty rose 68.45 points or 1.10 percent to 6,289.90. Advancing shares outnumbered declining ones by a ratio of 1458 to 1034 on the BSE.

Hindalco Industries kept its top position in the buying list, rising more than 7 percent followed by Sesa Sterlite, Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda, IDFC, IndusInd Bank and ICICI Bank with 4-5 percent upmove.

State-run BHEL recouped all its Monday's losses, gaining 2.7 percent.

Shares of Tata Power, NTPC, Larsen & Toubro, ITC, Reliance Industries, Hindustan Unilever, HDFC, ONGC, Tata Motors and State Bank of India jumped 1-2 percent.

However, Sun Pharma, ITC, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Bank and Dr Reddy's Labs are marginally lower.

2:00 pm Stock in news: Shares of Suven Life Sciences rallied as much as 5 percent intraday after the company granted an exclusive license and right to distribute its Malathion lotion.

This lotion is indicated for patients infected with Pediculus humanus capitis (head lice and their ova) of the scalp hair.

"Suven Life Sciences today has granted an exclusive license and right to distribute and market its Malathion Lotion USP 0.5 percent w/v with US patent # 8,138,366 and ANDA 091559 in USA, Canada and Mexico to Taro Pharmaceuticals North America, a subsidiary of Taro Pharmaceutical Industries," the company said in its filing.

1:50 pm Sahara update: While Sahara chief Subrata Roy was being produced in Supreme Court, a man threw ink at him and called him a thief. The protestor identified himself as Manoj Sharma says he is an advocate reportedly came from Gwalior.

Sharma was beaten up by lawyers and other Sahara supporters for attacking Subrata. Flaunting his torn shirt,he confessed committing the act before the media persons gathered in court premises.

Uttar Pradesh Police brought Roy to Delhi on Tuesday morning for his appearance before the SC in connection with the case where Sahara owes several investors over Rs 20,000 crore.

1:40 pm Market outlook: Tushar Pradhan, CIO, HSBC Global Asset Management  feels the market is likely to be more fixated with the upcoming general elections.

He believes that since most of the cyclical are beaten down much more than most of the other stocks in the Indian market, upside will come maximum from there. "If you look at the fundamental reason to invest in cyclical, the change in the economic scenario will take some time to get effected in the numbers and if you are talking about profits and a turnaround in the actual fundamentals of the companies, it is almost about 18 months to about 24 months away.," he said.

1:30 pm Buzzing: Shares of IVRCL soared 10 percent intraday as its irrigation and water division bagged an order worth Rs 2,633 crore.

Out of the total order, irrigation division pocketed order worth Rs 2492 crore while the rest is for the water division.

The Hyderabad-based construction and Infrastructure company said that the orders are awarded by projects including Karnataka Neeravari Nigam, Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam and AP government, INCAP, Hyderabad.

The market is on fire as Ukraine jitters are seen to be subsiding and Asian markets also recovered.

The Sensex is up 265.13 points or 1.27 percent at 21211.78, and the Nifty up 74.75 points or 1.20 percent at 6296.20.  About 1387 shares have advanced, 981 shares declined, and 129 shares are unchanged.

President Vladimir Putin has ordered troops that took part in military exercises in central and western Russia to return to base after completing their training, Russian news agencies quoted the Kremlin spokesman as saying on Tuesday.

Moscow had denied that the exercises, which began last week, had anything to do with events in Ukraine, where Putin has said he has the right to deploy troops to protect Russian compatriots.

Meanehile, the Aam Admi party's popularity takes a slight dip in key battleground states but remains strong in Delhi as BJP-Shiv Sena are set to turn the tables on Congress and NCP in Maharashtra.

01:00pm Market Update
The market extended gains in afternoon trade. The Sensex rose 257.71 points or 1.23 percent to 21204.36 and the Nifty climbed 72.40 points or 1.16 percent to 6,293.85.

About 1396 shares have advanced, 983 shares declined, and 127 shares are unchanged.

12:59pm IVRCL on buyers' radar post big order
IVRCL gained 8.5 percent as the company's irrigation division and water division bagged orders worth Rs 2,632.85 crore.

The above orders include three orders worth Rs 2,364 crore from Karnataka Neeravari Nigam.

12:50pm Suven Life surges 2%
Suven Life Sciences has granted an exclusive license and right to distribute and market its Malathion Lotion in USA, Canada and Mexico to Taro Pharmaceuticals North America.

Malathion lotion is indicated for patients infected with Pediculus humanus capitis (head lice and their ova) of the scalp hair.

"In consideration for the exclusive license and right to distribute and market Malathion Lotion in North America, Taro will pay Suven a royalty and the arrangement is effective until April 2028 unless otherwise terminated," the company said in its filing.

12:40pm Market Expert
Tushar Pradhan, CIO, HSBC Global Asset Management does not expect any major impact on India due to the Ukraine crisis.

He feels the market is likely to be more fixated with the upcoming general elections.

''So, while these situations will continue to affect global markets, and India in-turn, but the real legs to our market will come from the forthcoming election and their results,'' he told CNBC-TV18.

12:30pm Brigade eyes Rs 120 cr in sales from new project
Brigade Enterprises has launched a new project of 156 retirement homes in Bangalore with an aim to tap on the increasing retiring population of India. MR Jaishankar, chairman and managing director, Brigade Enterprise says the company is aiming at revenue of Rs 120 crore from the project.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Jaishankar says the project is a combination of 1 Bedroom-Hall-Kitchen (BHK) and 2BHK houses. The company is targeting to earn Rs 40-55 lakhs from each unit.

 ''We have seen good interest for the project. About 25 percent of the 156 units have already been booked,'' adds Jaishankar.

Despite the slowdown in the economy and increase in residential projects, Bangalore market is continuing to do well, says Jaishankar. Increased prices are a reflection of the high inflation levels, which beyond a point developers can't sustain. ''We have to pass it on to customers,'' he highlights.

However, the prices, that are at stable levels now are likely to rise post elections, he warns.

''Book your houses now, because it will only get more costly later on,'' he cautions before adding that Q4 is bound to be much better than Q3.

12:20pm Capital First talks to CNBC-TV18
Capital First, a non-deposit taking NBFC focussed on financing MSMEs, has announced that it is raising fresh capital of Rs 178 crore on a preferrential basis at Rs 153.80 per share subject to approval of shareholders.

The company will allot 83.6 lakh shares for Rs 128 crore to Warbug Pincus affiliate Cloverdell Investment and another 32.5 lakh shares to HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company for Rs 50 crore. Post the transcation, Capital First's combined Tier 1 and Tier 2 capital will increase to Rs 1791 crore.

Speaking about the deal, V Vaidyanathan, CMD told CNBC-TV18 that it is important for the financial services arm to be adequately capitalized. Capital Adequacy Ratio post the transaction will increase to 24 percent from 21.4 percent; hence there will be no need to infuse more capital for next 18 months, he said.

12:10pm Jubilant Life gains for third day
Shares of Jubilant Life Sciences jumped over 3 percent, as its subsidiary exited from hospital business in east India. Jubilant First Trust Healthcare, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jubilant Life Sciences, has sold its hospital business to Narayana Health.

The two hospitals are based in West Bengal - Kalpataru in Barasat and Rabindranath Thakur in Berhampore.

"The business has been transferred on a going concern basis as a slump sale which will enable Jubilant Life Sciences to focus on its core businesses in pharmaceuticals and life sciences," it said in a statement to the BSE.

Meanwhile, the company on February 28 had announced successful resolution to FDA warning letter for Montreal facility.

12:00pm The market recouped all its Monday's losses on hopes that Ukraine crisis may ease soon. Media reports suggest that Russian president Vladimir Putin has ordered troops sent last week to return to their bases.

The Sensex climbed 190.89 points to 21,137.54 and the Nifty rose 55.30 points to 6,276.75. About 1341 shares have advanced, 907 shares declined, and 127 shares are unchanged.

India's largest private sector lender ICICI Bank surged over 3 percent while rival Axis Bank gained nearly 3 percent. State Bank of India and HDFC Bank rose between 0.5-0.9 percent. Housing finance company HDFC climbed 1.5 percent.

Index heavyweights Reliance Industries, ITC and Infosys advanced 0.5-1 percent.

Hindalco Industries topped the buying list, rising 4.5 percent followed by Sesa Sterlite, GAIL and Tata Power with 2-2.7 percent upmove.

However, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Sun Pharma are only losers in afternoon trade.

11:50 am Gas price hearing: The Supreme Court will hear two petitions challenging the Cabinet decision to hike the price of natural gas produced in the country.

The government had recently brought in a new formula to pay gas producers such as Reliance Industries, as advised by the C Rangarajan panel. The new gas pricing mechanism comes into effect from April 1 this year and is expected to about double the prices from the current USD 4.2 per unit.

The two petitions have been filed by senior CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta and an NGO, Common Cause, whose member is Aam Aadmi Party ideologue Prashant Bhushan.

11:40 am Ukraine update: Russian President Putin orders troops to return to base, reports Reuters. The market surges with Nifty breaching 6250. The Nifty is up 47.40 points at 6268.85 and the Sensex is up 167.18 points at 21113.83. About 1325 shares have advanced, 899 shares declined, and 127 shares are unchanged.

11:30 am FII view: John Woods of Citi Private Bank feels that the damage from the Ukraine crisis could be very high and the markets at the moment are underpricing the risk associated with it.

He believes emerging markets like India could see higher outflows. ''Transmission mechanism through higher energy prices could be quiet profound,'' explains Woods. Oil prices have risen already. The Ukraine issue coupled with tapering by the US Federal Reserve, slowdown in China, and the liquidity conditions across central banks around the globe can result in outflows from markets like India.

11:20 am Buzzing: Shares of Jubilant Life Sciences jumped over 7 percent intraday on Tuesday, as its subsidiary exited from hospital business in east India. Jubilant First Trust Healthcare, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jubilant Life Sciences, has sold its hospital business to Narayana Health.

The two hospitals are based in West Bengal - Kalpataru in Barasat and Rabindranath Thakur in Berhampore.

"The business has been transferred on a going concern basis as a slump sale which will enable Jubilant Life Sciences to focus on its core businesses in pharmaceuticals and life sciences," it said in a statement to the BSE.

The market has rebounded after initial tepidness. The Sensex is up 79.22 points at 21025.87, and the Nifty is up 20.20 points at 6241.65. About 1226 shares have advanced, 783 shares declined, and 116 shares are unchanged.

The rupee is weak against dollar as traders turn risk-averse amid flaring geo-political tensions. Most bonds are trading on a positive note after recouping initial losses. Value buying and short covering are supporting prices.

Currencies saw the Russian ruble, Hungarian forint, Turkish lira depreciate against the dollar with the euro holding steady with a downward bias. The yen is trading at a one-month high on risk aversion.

Brent is trading at the highest levels seen in 2014 and Nymex is at in 5-month highs.

Asian markets trade mixed following steep declines on Wall Street overnight amid heightened tensions in Ukraine.

10:59am GMR Infrastructure wins first railway project
A consortium led by GMR Infrastructure has won construction package of rail line doubling between Jhansi and Bhimsen stations in the State of Uttar Pradesh, India.

The total contract is valued at approximately Rs 267 crore of which GMR's share of work is about Rs 135 crore. The work includes construction of roadbed, major & minor bridges, track linking, outdoor S&T Works, OHE, TSS & General Electrical works from Jhansi to Erich road, the company said in its filing.

GMR is the lead member of the consortium with TATA Projects and Kalindee Rail Nirman as the partner for OHE and track works, S&T works respectively. The project is scheduled to commence from April 2, 2014 and duration for completion of the project is 42 months.

Rail Vikas Nigam Limited has issued the Letter of Award to GMR consortium on 20th Feb 2014.

"As a part of our asset light strategy, we are very happy to announce first foray into the very promising railway construction sector," Arun Kumar Sharma, CEO GMR Urban Infrastructure & Highways said.

The stock rose 1.72 percent to Rs 20.75 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

10:50am Mukesh Ambani tops India Forbes list
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has regained the title of the world's richest man in Forbes magazine's annual billionaire list that includes 56 India-based billionaires led by Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani.

Gates is back at the top spot after a four-year hiatus, reclaiming the title of world's richest person from Mexican telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helu, who had ranked number 1 for the previous four years.

Gates, whose fortune rose by USD 9 billion in the past year to USD 76 billion, has held the top spot for 15 of the past 20 years.

"After years focused on his philanthropy, Gates plans to spend more of his time working with product managers at Microsoft as rivals like Google and Apple continue to outshine the company in the market," Forbes said.

With a networth of USD 18.6 billion, Reliance Industries (RIL) chief Mukesh Ambani leads the pack of 56 billionaires based in India featured on the list.

His younger brother Anil Ambani is ranked 281st on the list with a net worth of USD5 billion, reports PTI.

10:40am Religare feels Ukraine crisis may hit Dr Reddy's significantly
The Russian threat of a military strike on Ukraine's Crimean region is a minor irritant for the Indian pharmaceutical sector, says Arvind Bothra, vice president, Religare Enterprises.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Bothra says the crisis is likely to impact Dr Reddy's and Ranbaxy that export to the troubled region.

''About 18 percent of Dr Reddy's revenues come from the Russia Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) so it could impact the stock,'' says Bothra.

In the latest in the geopolitical toughening of stances, it has been reported that Ukrainian President asked Russia to send troops across the border to protect civilians. More than thousand Russian troops have been pouring into the Crimean peninsula sparking outrage and threats of economic sanctions from the US and European Union.

The Russian currency, the rouble, took a hard hit on Monday by falling around 9 percent, to a historic low against the dollar.

''Dr Reddy's may see a 2-3 percent impact if the rouble falls over 10 percent,'' warns Bothra.

10:30am HCC on buyers' radar
Shares of Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) rallied 6 percent as the company in a joint venture with GVPR Engineers bagged a contract worth Rs 903.83 crore from Karnataka Neeravari Nigam (Karnataka Government's nodal agency to implement major irrigation projects).

"The contract is for diversion of flood water from Sakleshpura (West) to Kolar/Chikkaballapur (East) under Yettinahole Diversion Project-Package-4," the company said in its filing.

HCC's share in the joint venture is 50 percent and the project will be completed in 36 months.

Yettinahole is a tributary of Netravati River and the Karnataka Government enterprise is diverting flood water from Sakaleshpur (West) to drought prone areas of Chikkaballapur and Kolar districts.

Apart from survey, investigation, design and construction works, the company will also see operation and maintenance for a period of 5 years after successful commissioning of the scheme and obtaining environmental clearance and other statutory clearances from competent authorities on turnkey basis.

10:20am Rally in AstraZeneca Pharma continues
Shares of AstraZeneca Pharma gained as much as 15.7 percent intraday today in addition to 20 percent upper circuit in previous session on delisting offer proposal. Now the stock is up 8.5 percent.

The board of directors of the company will consider parent's delisting proposal on March 5.

AstraZeneca Pharma will have a smooth delisting process unlike Fresenius Kabi, says Yogesh Radke, Head of Quantitative Research, Edelweiss Securities.

AstraZeneca parent needs to acquire 15 percent to successfully carry out the delisting process. The company is likely to get this 15 percent from the 6 FIIs who had bought a 15.5 percent stake in the company via an open offer sale (OFS) last year.

The bargaining power is now with the shareholders, says Radke, who believes Rs 1300 per share is a fair price for the stock currently.

''While the FIIs may try to get the delisting at Rs 1400 or 1500, the point is how much more can the company give, given the current market conditions,'' explains Radke.

While the delisting of the stock from the exchanges is unlikely to be plagued by numerous litigations, a price range of Rs 1400 or 1500 will be far stretched.

10:10am FII view on Ukraine issue
Stocks in Russia sold off over fears that the Russia-Ukraine issue has the potential to result in a full-blown war. However most analysts are not yet worried that this could lead to a global sell-off in key asset classes, or a contagion effect.

But John Woods of Citi Private Bank feels that the damage from the Ukraine crisis could be very high and the markets at the moment are underpricing the risk associated with it.

He believes emerging markets like India could see higher outflows. ''Transmission mechanism through higher energy prices could be quiet profound,'' explains Woods. Oil prices have risen already. The Ukraine issue coupled with tapering by the US Federal Reserve, slowdown in China, and the liquidity conditions across central banks around the globe can result in outflows from markets like India.

10:00am The market rebounded today with marginal gains after seeing a fall in previous session on account of geo-political tensions in Ukraine and Russia.

The Sensex rose 44.45 points to 20,991.10 and the Nifty climbed 9.30 points to 6,230.75. About 1102 shares have advanced, 572 shares declined, and 72 shares are unchanged.

Sesa Sterlite, Hindalco Industries and Tata Power topped the buying list, rising over a 2 percent while shares of ICICI Bank, HDFC, Hindustan Unilever, Axis Bank, Tata Steel and GAIL gained 1-1.5 percent.

However, Maruti Suzuki slipped over a percent after RBI said FIIs cannot buy more shares of the company as trigger cap reached.

Dr Reddy's Labs fell another 1 percent in addition to 3 percent decline in previous session on profit booking. The stock had rallied 6 percent last week.

Bajaj Auto dropped further, losing a percent on account of weak sales in February. TCS, Tata Motors and Infosys declined 0.4 percent each.

9:50 am DLF fall: Real estate major DLF is once again under scanner of Competition Commission of India (CCI) for allegedly misusing its dominant position in the market by drafting a one-sided agreement with the buyers of flats in its New Town Heights project in Gurgaon, reports suggest.

In August 2011, CCI had imposed a penalty of Rs 630 crore on DLF on allegations by the flat owners' association of The Belaire, a housing complex in Gurgaon, that the real estate company had delayed the project and had built more floors than originally committed.

9:40 am  FII view: Ridham Desai, Morgan Stanley says new growth cycle in India hinges on the election results and ensuing policy action. Paying a higher price today based on favorable outcomes makes the risk-reward unfavourable. He is adding Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Wipro and Oil India to our portfolio at the expense of HDFC, TCS, Maruti Suzuki and Dabur India.

Tobias Levkovich, Citi feels recent events in the Ukraine could unsettle euphoric markets but should not be that disruptive. "News of Russian troops taking up positions in Crimea and surrounding Ukrainian military installations has escalated risks. This comes at a time when investor sentiment is giddy with S&P 500 hitting new highs. Barring a breakout of major hostilities though, a severe decline in share prices seems rather unlikely," Levkovich adds.

9:30 am Buzzing: Maruti Suzuki stock fell nearly 2 percent in early trade on Tuesday after the Reserve Bank of India said foreign institutional investors can not buy more shares of the company as trigger cap has been reached.

The Reserve Bank of India on Monday notified that the foreign share holding in Maruti Suzuki India by foreign institutional investors (FIIs) under portfolio investment scheme has reached the trigger limit of 22 percent.

Hence, further purchases of equity shares of this company would be allowed only after obtaining prior approval of the Reserve Bank of India, according to a release.

Promoter Suzuki Motor Corporation holds 56.21 percent stake in the company as of December 2013.

The market has opened on a mute note. However, investors remain cautious as political tensions between Russia and Ukraine escalate. US president has warned that US will mull economic and diplomatic sanctions that will isolate Russia if it doesn't stop its military threat to Crimea.

The Sensex is up 6.00 points at 20952.65, and the Nifty is down 4.70 points at 6216.75. About 224 shares have advanced, 89 shares declined, and 20 shares are unchanged.

Bharti Airtel, Hindalco, ITC, Tata Steel and ICICI Bank are top gainers in the Sensex. Among the losers are Infosys, Dr Reddy's Labs, HDFC Bank, L&T and Maruti Suzuki.

The Indian rupee opened lower by 9 paise at 62.12 per dollar on Tuesday versus previous day's closing value of 62.03 a dollar.The dollar index climb past 80.063, pulling away from a two-month trough of 79.688 seen on Friday.

The yen holds onto chunky gains early this morning, having been squeezed higher as skittish investor's dumped riskier assets amid tensions over Russian military intervention in Ukraine.
Ashutosh Raina of HDFC Bank said, "Political tension in Ukraine and subsequent intervention by Russia has sent global markets into a tizzy. The global risk off sentiment has resulted in flight to safety."

"Indian markets have also reacted negatively to these global concerns. I expect rupee to continue trading in 61.50-62.50/USD range," he added

Wall Street ended Monday sharply lower while Asian was soft in morning trade.

Brent Crude spiked 2 percent as the Ukraine crisis raised concerns about a disruption of Russian natural gas supplies. Nymex too rose to USD 104 dollars. Precious metal gold is holding on to its near 4-month highs.