The benchmark indices further extended gains in mid-afternoon trade, boosted by strength in banks stocks. The Nifty marched towards 17,600 mark.
At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, S&P BSE Sensex rose 416.73 points or 0.71% at 58,985.24. The Nifty 50 index gained 121.85 points or 0.70% at 17,586.60.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index added 1.18%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index rose 1.62%.
The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, shares 2,619 rose and 731 shares fell. A total of 106 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.
Numbers to Watch:
MCX Gold futures for 5 April 2022 settlement fell 0.37% to Rs 51,395.
The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, rose 0.16% to 98.47.
In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2022 settlement fell 84 cents at $103.87 a barrel.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Financial Services index rose 1.60% to 17,420.80. The index lost 0.12% in trading session.
HDFC Asset Management Company (up 4.84%), Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) Financial Services (up 3.83%), REC (up 3.05%), Power Finance Corporation (up 2.98%) and State Bank of India (SBI) (up 2.95%) were the top gainers in the Financial Services segment.
Stocks in Spotlight:
NMDC advanced 2.12%. The state-run firm intimated the bourses regarding a hike in prices of both, lump iron ore and iron fines, with immediate effect. The company has fixed prices for lump iron ore (65.5%, 6-40 mm) at Rs 6,100 per ton and iron fines (64% - 10 mm) at Rs 5,160 per ton with effect from 1 April 2022.
Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI) rallied 3.51%. The company's sales rose by 5.96% Y-o-Y to Rs 861.73 crore in FY22 from Rs 813.23 crore for FY21. Meanwhile, exports surged 348.09% YoY to Rs 87.02 crore in FY22 from Rs 19.42 crore posted in FY21. In the regulatory filing MIDHANI said continued focus on revenue enhancement and cost reduction yielded results which have contributed to four fold increase in exports. MIDHANI also said that it continued its focus on cost optimisation measures including indigenisation of various components, increasing outsourcing efforts and rationalisation of manpower.
Engineers India jumped 3.05%. The PSU company inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Numaligarh Refinery (NRL) for the development and commercialization of technologies. Under the MoU, Engineers India and Numaligarh Refinery will jointly develop and license indigenous technologies. The MoU was signed on 31 March 2022. Numaligarh Refinery is an operating petroleum refining & marketing company with an product range covering most of the refinery streams.
Global Markets:
European shares advanced while Asian stocks ended on a mixed note 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, 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.
Powered by Capital Market - Live News
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
