Nifty above 17,550; oil & gas stocks advance

The domestic equity barometers extended gains and hit fresh intraday high in afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 17,550 level. Oil & gas stocks were in demand.

At 13:23 IST, the barometer index, S&P BSE Sensex rose 316.71 points or 0.54% to 58,885.22. The Nifty 50 index added 87.75 points or 0.5% to 17,552.50.

In broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 0.89%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 1.50%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, shares 2,563 rose and 739 shares fell. A total of 110 shares were unchanged.

Economy:

India`s current account deficit (CAD) increased to $23 billion (2.7% of GDP) in Q3:2021-22 from $9.9 billion (1.3% of GDP) in Q2:2021-22 and $2.2 billion (0.3% of GDP) a year ago [i.e., Q3:2020-21]. The widening of CAD in Q3:2021-22 was mainly on account of higher trade deficit, as per the data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 31 March 2022.

India`s fiscal deficit for February-end stood at 82.7% of revised estimates in Budget, according to official data released by the government on Thursday. The fiscal gap stood at Rs 13.17 lakh crore.

In April-February, net tax receipts were Rs 14.81 lakh crore while total expenditure was Rs 31.44 lakh crore, the data showed. The revenue gap came in at Rs 8.7 lakh crore, while spending was at Rs 31.4 lakh crore.

Stocks in Spotlight:

The Nifty Oil & Gas index rose 1.05% to 7,949.20. The index had declined 1.44% to end at 7,355.85 yesterday.

Aegis Logistics (up 6.13%), BPCL (up 2.98%), Castrol India (up 2.67%), Adani Total Gas (up 2.09%), Gail (up 2.08%), Mahanagar Gas (up 1.73%), Indraprastha Gas (up 1.61%), HPCL (up 1.58%), IOC (up 1.39%) and Petronet LNG (up 1.37%) advanced while Gujarat Gas (down 1.69%) declined.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation rose 1.16% to Rs 165.80. ONGC said that the company would soon commercialize another Basin - the Vindhyan Basin. This would be the ninth producing Basin of India; the eighth by ONGC.

Global Markets:

European markets edged higher to start the second quarter on Friday, with talks between Russia and Ukraine continuing to guide investor sentiment.

Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have yielded little fruit thus far, with Kyiv and its Western allies remaining skeptical of Moscow`s intentions and the legitimacy of its commitment to partial military pullbacks in northern Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that gas exports to "unfriendly" states will be halted from Friday unless they pay in rubles, furthering global energy supply concerns. However, European leaders have indicated that this demand will not apply to Russia`s European customers.

Most Asian stocks were trading lower on Friday, following overnight losses on Wall Street as a private survey showed Chinese manufacturing activity shrank in March.

China`s Caixin/Markit manufacturing Purchasing Managers` Index came in at 48.1, below the 50-level that separates growth from contraction. That compared against the previous month`s reading of 50.4. Friday`s reading was also the lowest since February 2020.

Sentiment at Japan`s large manufacturers soured in the three months to March, according to the Bank of Japan`s quarterly tankan business sentiment survey. The headline index for large manufacturers` sentiment came in at 14, a decline from the previous quarter`s reading of 17.

US stocks slumped on Thursday as concerns persisted about the continuing conflict in Ukraine and its inflationary effect on prices and the Federal Reserve`s response.

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