Market drifts higher; breadth strong

The key equity benchmarks traded with modest gains in early trade. The Nifty traded above the 22,200 level. Healthcare and IT shares declined while PSU bank , Oil & gas and media stocks advanced.

At 09:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 333.10 points or 0.46% to 73,276.78. The Nifty 50 index advanced 98.40 points or 0.44% to 22,246.30.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.72% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.83%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,258 shares rose and 597 shares fell. A total of 103 shares were unchanged.

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 4,468.09 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs), were net buyers to the tune of Rs 2,040.38 crore in the Indian equity market on 16 April, provisional data showed.

Economy:

The International Monetary Fund raised India�s FY25 GDP growth forecast by 30 bps to 6.8% from its January forecast of 6.5%, citing bullish domestic demand conditions and a rising working-age population. IMF sees India`s FY26 GDP growth at 6.5%. The global financial agency sees India`s retail inflation at 4.6% in FY25 and 4.2% in FY26.

Politics:

India is gearing up for its election in 2024. The BJP is looking to consolidate its grip on power as it aims for a historic third term while a band of opposition parties, including the Congress, has formed a united front called INDIA to deny PM Modi another victory. The elections will occur in 7 phases, starting on 19 April and ending on 1 June. The Lok Sabha elections 2024 results will declared on 4 June.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper fell 0.46% to 7.160 from previous close of 7.190.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 83.5300, compared with its close of 83.6150 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2024 is flat to Rs 72,520.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.08% to 105.87.

The United States 10-year bond yield declined 0.37% to 4.567.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2024 settlement rose 30 cents or 0.34% to $87.59 a barrel.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Power Grid Corporation of India rallied 3.26% after the company informed that its board has approved the raising of bonds as POWERGRID bonds issue(s) upto Rs 12,000 crore during FY 2024-25. The unsecured, non-convertible, non-cumulative, redeemable, taxable bonds will be issued in one or more tranches / series.

HDFC Bank rose 0.50%. The board of directors of the bank may consider annual renewal of issuance of Long-Term Bonds (Financing of Infrastructure and Affordable Housing), Perpetual Debt Instruments (part of Additional Tier I capital) and Tier II Capital Bonds over the period of next twelve months through private placement mode in its board meeting on 20 April 2024.

Tata Communications advanced 1.65% after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 321.52 crore in Q4 FY24 as against net profit of Rs 326.64 crore posted in Q4 FY23. Total income rose to Rs 5,748.70 crore from Rs 4,630.45 crore.

Global Market:

Asian stocks advanced. Investors in Asia will assess Australia�s unemployment rate, which is one of the metrics the country�s central bank weighs when considering monetary policy.

US stocks closed lower on Wednesday as crude prices tumbled and investors weighed cautious US Federal Reserve commentary and ongoing geopolitical strife against mixed quarterly earnings.

The U.S. economy grew �slightly� over the past six weeks while price increases moved at a �modest� pace and employment showed �slight� gains as well, the Federal Reserve said in its latest Beige Book report filed Wednesday.

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