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WEEKLY MARKET REPORT
The Indian markets ended lower with Nifty below 22,500 amid selling in heavyweights and stocks across sectors, barring metal.
At close on Friday, the Sensex was down 732.96 points or 0.98 percent at 73,878.15, and the Nifty was down 172.35 points or 0.76 percent at 22,475.80. About 1,241 shares advanced, while 2,013 shares declined and 79 shares were unchanged.
For the week, BSE Sensex and Nifty50 gave flat returns. On Friday, The BSE midcap index fell 0.2 percent, and smallcap index was down 0.5 percent.
On Friday, among sectors, except metal, all other sectoral indices ended in the red with capital goods, realty, telecom, and PSU Bank down one percent each, while oil & gas, auto, Information Technology, and Media fell 0.5 percent each.
ECONOMY
Oil prices rebound after closing at a seven-week low
Oil prices rose on Thursday, rebounding from three days of losses that took prices to their lowest since mid-March.
Brent crude futures for July gained 79 cents, or 0.95%, to $84.23 a barrel by 0959 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for June climbed 69 cents, or 0.87%, to $79.69.
Prices fell more than 3% to a seven-week low on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady and warned of stubborn inflation, which could curtail economic growth this year and limit oil demand increases.
Economists push out India rate cut forecasts to end of year
The Reserve Bank of India will likely delay cutting interest rates until the final quarter of the year, the latest Bloomberg survey shows, as inflation risks rise and the US Federal Reserve keeps rates on hold for longer.
The RBI may start cutting its benchmark repurchase rate, currently at 6.5%, by a total of 50 basis points in the October-December period before pausing for a few months, the monthly survey shows. In the previous survey, economists had predicted a reduction in the July-September quarter.
India’s government bond outflows in April an aberration, say, analysts.
The recent sharp foreign investor selling in Indian government bonds in April, marking the highest monthly sales since the Covid-19 pandemic, is only an aberration, with inflows likely to continue in the coming months, senior market participants said.
A large part of these outflows have happened on the back of weakness in the local currency and a jump in U.S. yields as investors repriced rate cut expectations, they said.
GLOBAL MARKETS
Wall Street ends higher as Fed signals dovish bias
U.S. stocks rallied on Thursday as investors weighed the Federal Reserve’s more dovish-than-expected interest rate guidance on Wednesday against a plethora of mixed earnings and economic data.
All three indexes ended in positive territory. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the way, advancing 1.5% with a healthy boost from chip stocks after Qualcomm reported quarterly sales and profit above analysts’ expectations.
Asian stocks surge on tech boost; yen extends gains to cap wild week
Asian stocks rallied on Friday after Apple’s record $110 billion share buyback plan lifted the tech sector.
With markets in Japan and mainland China closed on Friday, regional trading activity is likely to be subdued as traders look ahead to the U.S. nonfarm payrolls data later in the day.
The yen strengthened 0.55% to 152.80 per dollar in early trading on Friday, having started the week by touching a 34-year low of 160.245 per dollar on Monday.
STOCKS IN NEWS
Ugro Capital: Non-banking company Ugro Capital on Thursday said its board has approved the acquisition of financial services platform MyShubhLife for an enterprise value of Rs 45 crore in a cash and equity deal. The board also approved raising equity capital of Rs 1,322 crore through Compulsory Convertible Debentures (CCD) and warrants. The equity fundraise is subject to shareholder approval.
Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone: Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Ltd (APSEZ) on Thursday said it handled 36.2 million metric tonnes (MMT) of cargo in April, registering a 12 percent year-on-year growth. APSEZ in a statement said growth was recorded across most domestic ports, with Dhamra Port recording its highest-ever monthly cargo of 4.38 MMT.
Mahindra & Mahindra: The company on Thursday said its total wholesales increased 13 percent year-on-year to 70,471 units in April as compared to the same month last year. The company’s total dispatches to its dealers stood at 62,294 units in April 2023. The Mumbai-based auto major’s passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market rose 18 percent to 41,008 units last month against 34,698 units in April 2023, it said in a statement.
Godfrey Phillips: Shares of Godfrey Phillips India surged around 7 percent on May 3, a day after the company announced that it had signed an agreement with Ferrero India Pvt. Ltd for the distribution and resale of select sweet-packaged food products manufactured by Ferrero through select channels.
Hindustan Zinc: The company said in a notice to exchanges that it will announce dividends on May 7, with a record date fixed on May 15. In FY24 so far, it declared Rs 7 per share in July 2023 and Rs 6 per share in December 2023, totaling around Rs 5,493 crore.
Ashok Leyland: Commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland on Thursday reported a 10 percent increase in total wholesales at 14,271 units in April as compared to 12,974 units in the same month last year. Domestic sales increased 9 percent to 13,446 units last month as compared to 12,366 units in April 2023, Ashok Leyland said in a statement.