Benchmark indices started Friday’s trade with nominal gains tracking mixed global cues. The indices, however, turned almost flat within minutes after opening, erasing all gains. Among the Sensex-30 shares, Bajaj twins, SBI, HDFC, Bharti Airtel, M&M, and Kotak Bank were the top gainers. Titan, PowerGrid, Nestle, HDFC Bank and Maruti, meanwhile, were the top losers.
Sectorally, Nifty Auto, Metals, PSBs, Realty and Oil & Gas were the notable gainers. While, Nifty Bank, IT, Pharma, and FMCG were subdued. In the broader markets, the BSE MidCap and SmallCap indices were in the positive territory, up to 0.6 per cent higher.
Among individual stocks, Motherson Sumi gained 4 per cent on winning an order to manufacture & supply parts for commercial plane interiors to Boeing.
This apart, Zen Technologies was also nearly 5 per cent up. The company has received a project sanction order (PSO) from the Indian Army, for design and development of prototype of Integrated Air Defence Combat Simulator (IADCS).
Dr. V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, said: “The 17,000-17,500 range for Nifty is likely to hold for the near term with a possible breakout above the upper band coming early in April triggered by positive news from the earnings season. The bullish undertone of the market is evident from the fact that inspite of lots of unfavorable developments Nifty is up by 2.5 per cent in March so far and India is outperforming most of the markets. A hawkish Fed, spiking crude and uncertainties associated with the war haven’t diminished the enthusiasm of the bulls. The trend of preference for value over growth is evident in the strong performance of stocks like RIL and ITC and the weak performance of stocks like Britannia and HUL. This trend is likely to continue”
The markets ended the previous choppy session with marginal losses as investors continue to be on the wait and watch mode amid uncertainties of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Markets will closely monitor the EU summit’s last-day meetings for any cues on likely bans on Russia’s energy imports. Meanwhile, US President Biden has warned that the US will respond to Russia if Putin uses chemical or biological weapons.
Back home, in the primary market, Ruchi Soya’s follow-on public offer was subscribed 12 per cent at the end of Day 1 of the offer period.
Global Cues
Major US stock indices rallied more than 1 per cent on Thursday, extending the market’s recent rebound, as investors snapped up beaten-down shares of chipmakers and big growth names and as oil prices dropped. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 349.44 points, or 1.02 per cent, to 34,707.94, the S&P 500 gained 63.92 points, or 1.43 per cent, to 4,520.16 and the Nasdaq Composite added 269.24 points, or 1.93 per cent, to 14,191.84.
Tokyo stocks opened higher on Friday on overnight rallies of US shares, led by semiconductor stocks. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index added 0.62 per cent, or 174.65 points, at 28,285.04 in early trade, while the broader Topix index rose 0.48 per cent, or 9.53 points, to 1,991.09. The dollar stood at 122.10 yen, slightly off from 122.38 yen seen on Thursday in New York.
Hong Kong stocks extended the previous day’s losses at Friday’s open as profit-takers moved in following the market’s recent rally. The Hang Seng Index fell 0.96 per cent, or 210.34 points, to 21,735.61. The Shanghai Composite Index dipped 0.10 per cent, or 3.11 points, to 3,247.16, while the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second exchange added 0.08 per cent, or 1.76 points, to 2,146.10.
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