Key indices trade with limited gains; market breadth in favor of buyers

The key equity barometers traded with limited gains in early trade. The Nifty hovered near the 17,650 level. IT, pharma and consumer durable stocks advanced while metals, autos and PSU banks lagged behind.

At 09:23 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 84.81 points or 0.14% to 59,717.16. The Nifty 50 index gained 21.45 points or 0.12% to 17,645.90.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index lost 0.03% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 0.17%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,461 shares rose and 928 shares fell. A total of 86 shares were unchanged.

Stocks in Spotlight:

HCL Technologies rose 1.68%. The IT major reported 2.76% fall in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,983 crore on 0.35% decline in revenue from operations to Rs 26,606 crore in Q4 FY23 over Q3 FY23. Compared with Q4 last year, the company`s net profit and revenue were higher by 10.85% and 17.74%, respectively.

For FY24, the company`s revenue guidance is 6%-8% YoY in constant currency. Services revenue is expected to grow 6.5%-8.5% YoY in constant currency. EBIT margin is expected to be between 18%-19%.

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company fell 1.21%. The company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 235.26 crore in Q4 March 2023, higher than net profit of Rs 186.88 crore in Q4 March 2022. Total income rose to Rs 11499.84 crore in Q4 March 2023 from Rs 13845.73 crore in Q4 March 2022.

Cyient zoomed 8.39%. The company reported 4.6% rise in net profit to Rs 163.2 crore on an 8.2% increase in revenues to Rs 1,751.4 crore in Q4 FY23 over Q3 FY23.

Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy tumbled 5.89%. The company reported consolidated net loss of Rs 421 crore in Q4 March 2023, higher than net loss of Rs 127 crore in Q4 March 2022. Total income dropped to Rs 88 crore in Q4 March 2023 from Rs 1071 crore in Q4 March 2022.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India`s 10-year benchmark federal paper advanced 0.06% to 7.224 from its previous closing of 7.22 recorded yesterday.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 82.1625, compared with its close of 82.1750 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2023 settlement declined 0.08% to Rs 60,455.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback`s value against a basket of currencies, was down 0.02% to 101.82.

The United States 10-year bond yield fell 0.43% to 3.530.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2023 settlement lost 8 cents or 0.10% to $81.02 a barrel.

Global Markets:

Asian markets declined across the board on Friday European stock markets were slightly higher on Friday as investors reacted to corporate earnings and economic data.

Japan`s inflation rate came in at 3.2% in March, slightly lower than February`s figure of 3.3%. This is the second straight month of slowing inflation after Japan`s headline inflation hit a 41-year high of 4.3% in January.

Overnight in the U.S., all three major indexes fell as investors assessed a mixed bag of corporate earnings, including disappointing results from Tesla.

Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester indicated Thursday that interest rates could have a little further to rise this year and stay for for a while. Precisely how much higher the federal funds rate will need to go from here and for how long policy will need to remain restrictive will depend on economic and financial developments, Mester said.

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