The BJP surged ahead in the Karnataka elections, even as the Congress seemed to choke, with the party leading/winning in 111 seats. It is likely that the BJP could form a government in Karnataka.

Shares in Kaveri Seed was trading higher, on reports that the company is considering a buyback of shares. The board is slated to meet on May 24, 2018 for the purpose. The shares of the company were up one per cent at Rs 512.

Hindustan Unilever shares surged after the company reported better than expected numbers. Revenue at the FMCG major was up 11 percent at Rs 9,097 crore, while the net profits at the company was up 14 percent at Rs 1,351 crore.

Dr Lal's Pathological Lab was another stock that was up on quarterly numbers reported by the firm. The revenue at the company was up 21 percent at Rs 267 crore, while the net profit was up 25 percent at Rs 40 crore.

The stock was last seen trading at Rs 828 up 2 per cent in trade.

Markets are likely to be volatile for the next two hours, before some stability being restored, post the final results of the Karnataka elections. It is likely that markets would find support at lower levels, given that most mutual funds in the country are flush with funds.

Meanwhile, Asian markets were trading lower on worries over rising interest rates in the US. The Hong Kong's Hang Sang was down more than one per cent, while the Japanese Nikkei and the Shanghai Composite were absolutely flat in trade.

GoodReturns.in