Bias may remain positive

After witnessing the surge on Wednesday the market is expected to make further headways on firm Asian markets. The market may see some short-term profit bookings in frontline stocks creating a volatility in the afternoon trades.

Major US indices slipped on Wednesday, amid subprime fears, disappointing corporate earnings and comments from Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke. The Dow Jones industrial average tumbled by as much as 145 points before finishing 53 points, or about 0.4 percent lower, the Nasdaq moved down by 13 points to close at 2699.

The Indian ADRs also witnessed sharp fall on the US bourses. HDFC Bank tumbled 3.87% followed by Dr Reddy's Lab shedding 3.62%, while Infosys, Satyam, Wipro, Tata Motors and Patni Computer were down around 0.5 -1% each. However, Rediff gained 1.91% and VSNL added 0.25%.

Crude oil prices rose on Wednesday, with the Nymex light crude oil for August delivery gaining $1.03 to close at $74.02 a barrel. In the commodity space, the Comex gold for August delivery gained $7.80 to settle at $665.90 an ounce.