SENSEX GAINS 377 PTS, NIFTY NEAR 17,500 LEVEL, BAJAJ TWINS RALLY

The domestic equity barometers marched higher and hit the day`s high in morning trade. The Nifty traded near the 17,500 level. Financial services stocks extended gains for the fifth consecutive trading session.

At 10:27 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 377.07 points or 0.64% to 59,483.51. The Nifty 50 index gained 99.55 points or 0.57% to 17,497.60.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.12% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index gained 0.69%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,343 shares rose and 845 shares fell. A total of 115 shares were unchanged.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kicked off its monetary policy meeting on 3 April 2023. The outcome of the meeting will be announced on Thursday, 6 April 2023. The RBI`s monetary policy committee (MPC) is expected to hike the repo rate by 25 basis points (bps) in order to combat rising inflation.

Economy:

India`s gross domestic product (GDP) growth will likely soften to 6.3% in FY2024, as against earlier estimate of 6.6%, the World Bank stated in its India Development Update. The bank stated that growth is set to be constrained by slower consumption growth and challenging external conditions. Rising borrowing costs and slower income growth will weigh on private consumption growth and government consumption is projected to grow at a slower pace due to the withdrawal of pandemic-related fiscal support measures.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Financial Services index rose 0.91% to 18,330.45, extending gains for the fifth straight session. The index rallied 4.06% in five trading sessions.

Bajaj Finance (up 3.64%), HDFC Bank (up 2.43%), Bajaj Finserv (up 2.36%), Housing Development Finance Corporation (up 2.27%), Cholamandalam Investment & Finance Company (up 1.34%), ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company (up 0.95%), HDFC Life Insurance Company (up 0.74%), Indian Energy Exchange (up 0.56%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 0.48%) and Muthoot Finance (up 0.42%) edged higher.

On the other hand, SBI Cards & Payment Services (down 1.01%), ICICI Bank (down 0.86%) and State Bank of India (down 0.75%) declined.

Bajaj Finance rallied 3.64% after the NBFC announced that new loans booked during Q4 FY23 grew by 20% to 7.6 million as compared to 6.3 million in Q4 FY22. "The company booked highest ever new loans of 29.6 MM in FY23,� the Bajaj Group company said in a statement

Stocks in Spotlight:

Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) rose 0.53% after the company said it handled about 32 MMT of total cargo in March 2023, implying a year-on-year growth of about 9.5%. For the first time since July 2022, the company`s volumes crossed the 30-MMT mark.

Bajaj Auto added 0.05%. The two wheeler maker`s total sales declined 2% to 2,91,567 units in March 2023 compared with 2,97,188 units sold in March 2022. The domestic sales surged 47% to 1,86,522 units, while exports slumped 38% to 1,05,045 units in March 2023 over March 2022.

Britannia Industries gained 0.70%. The FMCG major announced that its board has declared an interim dividend of Rs 72 per equity share for the financial year 2022‐23. The record date for determining the eligibility of shareholders for payment of interim dividend is Thursday, 13th April, 2023.

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