Share markets in India are presently trading on a strong note.

The BSE Sensex is trading up by 394 points, up 0.7%, at 61,131 levels.

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty is trading up by 132 points.

Wipro and Adani Ports & SEZ are among the top gainers today. Coal India and IndusInd Bank are among the top losers today.

The BSE Mid Cap index is trading up by 0.9%.

The BSE Small Cap index is trading up by 0.8%

On the sectoral front, stocks from the software sector are witnessing most of the buying interest.

On the other hand, stocks from the automobile sector are witnessing most of the selling pressure.

US stock futures are trading higher today, indicating a positive opening for Wall Street.

Nasdaq Futures are trading up by 109 points (up 0.7%) while Dow Futures are trading up by 166 points (up 0.5%).

The rupee is trading at 75.26 against the US$.

Gold prices are trading flat at Rs 47,935 per 10 grams.

Gold prices in Indian markets edged lower today after rising to near a three-month high in the previous session. On MCX, gold futures were down 0.2% to Rs 47,820.

In global markets, gold was down 0.3% at US$ 1,787 an ounce after a 2% jump overnight. A retreat by the US dollar and a pullback in benchmark US 10-year Treasury yields helped support the precious metal.

Note that because gold is measured in dollars, a weaker dollar means a higher price for the yellow metal.

Speaking of the precious yellow metal, how lucrative has gold been as a long-term investment in India?

The chart below shows the annual returns on gold over the last 15 years...

As you can see, barring just two years - 2013 and 2015, gold has delivered positive returns in 13 of the last 15 years.

The recent price volatility in the bullion market has rattled many traders. Even with the recent volatility in prices, gold remains among the best-performing commodities this year to combat the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Moving on to stock-specific news...

Among the buzzing stocks, today is Wipro.

Shares of Wipro rose over 8% on the exchanges today after the company's results for the September 2021 quarter exceeded analysts' expectations.

The company's revenue climbed 7.7% quarter on quarter (QoQ) to Rs 196.7 bn, which beat Street's expectations.

However, it reported a 9.6% sequential decline in net profit at Rs 29.3 bn. This was still above analysts' expectations. The decline in the bottom line was driven by higher tax payments and a sharp rise in costs.

Wipro said that it saw broad-based growth across all markets, sectors, and global business lines. The company's added two more clients in the US$ 100 m plus category and two more in the US$ 50 m plus bracket.

The operating performance of the company was sturdy given that it managed to keep the consolidated operating margin for the IT services segment flat sequentially at 17.8% on an adjusted basis.

Jatin Dalal, chief financial officer at Wipro, said,

• We sustained our operating margins in the September 2021 quarter in a narrow band even after absorbing the full impact of our recent acquisitions and investing significantly in our business across sales, capabilities, and talent.

Wipro said that it expects revenues to grow 2-4% in constant currency terms in the December 2021 quarter.

Moving on to news from the construction sector...

KEC International Completes 100% Acquisition of Spur Infrastructure

Construction company KEC International has completed the 100% acquisition of Spur Infrastructure for an enterprise value of Rs 620 m.

Spur Infrastructure is now a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company.

Spur Infrastructure is engaged in the setting up of cross-country oil & gas pipelines and city gas distribution networks.

In the last three years, the company has had annual revenue in excess of Rs 1 bn, a profitable track record, technical expertise, and experienced manpower.

It also has an order book of Rs 6 bn comprising of cross-country pipelines and city gas distribution network projects from marquee customers.

In its latest quarterly results, Spur Infrastructure posted a 34.8% year-on-year (YoY) fall in net profit at Rs 461.4 m. However, its sales rose 15.1% YoY to Rs 25.4 bn.

We will keep you posted on more updates from this space. Stay tuned.