Mahindra Satyam (up 2.38%), Rolta India (up 1.4%), Infosys (up 1.33%), MphasiS (up 1.3%), TCS (up 1.05%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.87%), Wipro (up 0.7%), Oracle Financial Services Software (up 0.42%) and HCL Technologies (up 0.28%), edged higher. The BSE IT index was up 1.05% at 5,606.36. It outperformed the Sensex, which was up 0.69% at 17,779.29. The BSE IT index had outperformed the market over the past one month until 16 August 2012, rising 5.97% compared with the Sensex's 3.24% rise. The index had, however, underperformed the market in past one quarter, gaining 0.64% as against 10.15% rise in the Sensex. US building permits jumped in July to a four-year peak. Building permits, a proxy for future construction, rose to an 812,000 pace last month, the most since August 2008, the US Commerce Department said. US is the biggest outsourcing market for Indian IT firms. Solid gains in the technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite index in the US also boosted gains in Indian IT shares. On Thursday, 16 August 2012, the Nasdaq climbed 1% to 3,062, compared with matching 0.7% gains for the Dow Jones industrial average and S&P 500. Meanwhile, eurozone debt worries eased after German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Thursday, 16 August 2012, said Germany will do whatever it can to keep the euro. Her comments were seen as supporting European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi's vow to save the euro. Europe is the second largest outsourcing market for Indian IT firms after the US. Mr Draghi said on 26 July 2012 that the ECB would take any steps within its mandate to preserve the common currency. After the ECB's rate decision a week later, Mr. Draghi said the central bank may soon step in to buy government bonds and consider other unconventional measures to lower high borrowing costs of financially stressed eurozone economies, but only under strict conditions. Powered by Capital Market - Live News |