NEW DELHI: Rising concerns over Omicron and surging inflation failed to dampen the mood on Dalal Street on Monday as benchmark indices climbed further, driven by buying in metal, banking and auto names.

The relentless selling by FPIs has been a major headwind for the market, particularly for banking stocks. But it is not having any significant impact on the market other than putting a cap on the upside of the rally. The high earnings visibility of financials, IT and construction-related stocks is encouraging DII and retail buying in these segments, said an analyst.

“The message from the meetings of the US Fed, ECB, Bank of England and Bank of Japan expected this week will give clues about the medium-term trajectory of interest rates, bond yields and markets. The sharp rise in Omicron cases in the UK is a concern,” said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.
How are bluechips doing
After opening in the green, benchmark indices pared some of the gains. At 9.26 am, BSE flagship Sensex was up 336 points or 0.57 per cent to 59,123. NSE benchmark Nifty rose 104 points or 0.59 per cent to 17,615.
In the 50-share pack Nifty, Power Grid was the biggest gainer, up 2.76 per cent. Axis Bank, 

Hindalco Industries, UPL, JSW Steel, 

ONGC

Bajaj Finance was the top loser in the pack, down 1.24 per cent. Reliance Industries was another stock that traded in the red.

FACTORS DRIVING MARKETS
US inflation: US consumer prices increased further in November as the cost of goods and services rose broadly amid supply constraints, leading to the largest annual gain since 1982. India is also set to report inflation data for November this week, which analysts say may rise further.
Fed meeting: The Federal Reserve is widely expected to signal a faster tapering of asset buying this week, and thus an earlier start to rate hikes. It will also update the dot plots for rates over the next couple of years. The European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan are also set to review their monetary policies this week.
UK reels under Omicron: Omicron remained a concern with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warning of a ‘tidal wave’ of new cases of the coronavirus variant, though markets are still counting on vaccines to limit the economic fallout.
Broader markets
Broader market indices were trading higher, outperforming their headline peers in morning trade. Nifty Smallcap was up 0.80 per cent while Nifty Midcap rose 0.66 per cent. Broadest index on NSE, Nifty 500 was up 0.64 per cent.
Indian Bank, 

Polycab India

Global markets
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan started with a 0.2 per cent gain, after bouncing 1.7 per cent last week. Japan's Nikkei rose 1.0 per cent, as a survey of large manufacturers found sentiment was the best since late 2018.

Wall Street looked to extend its gains with Nasdaq futures up 0.3 per cent and S&P 500 futures 0.2 per cent.