Domestic markets trade firm in early deals

Indian equity benchmarks made gap-up opening on Thursday tracking supportive global cues. Markets are trading firm in early deals on account bargain hunting after indices hit 11-month closing lows in previous session. Sentiments got a boost with a report that India has witnessed the sharpest rise among the Asian economies, with a six-position jump from 43rd to 37th rank on the annual World Competitiveness Index compiled by the Institute for Management Development, largely due to gains in economic performance. Adding more optimism, Madhaiyaan Angamuthu, chairman of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Exports Development Authority (APEDA) said India’s agricultural and processed food product exports will continue to surge in the current fiscal after a record shipment valued at $25.6 billion in 2021-22 because of global demand for the agricultural commodities

On the global front, most of the Asian markets are trading higher after the U.S. Federal Reserve hiked rates by 75 basis points - the biggest increase since 1994 - and left the door open for another rate increase of that magnitude in July to lower inflation, which is at a 40-year high. China's Shanghai Composite index rose as investors remained hopeful of a smooth demand recovery post-lockdowns. Japan's Nikkei index was up as attention shifted to the Bank of Japan policy meeting Friday.

Back home, mineral’s industry stocks were in focus as the government said the country’s mineral production rose by 7.8 per cent in April 2022 over the same month a year ago. Manganese ore, coal, lignite, bauxite and phosphorite were some of the minerals that showed positive growth in April. In stock specific movement, GE Power India gained after its arm GE Energy Financial Services acquired a 49% stake in Continuum Green Energy's 148.5 megawatt Morjar onshore wind project in Gujarat for an undisclosed sum.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 52901.30, up by 359.91 points or 0.69% after trading in a range of 52878.94 and 53142.50. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.73%, while Small cap index was up by 0.83%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Auto up by 0.94%, Consumer Discretionary up by 0.75%, Consumer Durables up by 0.73%, Bankex up by 0.69%, FMCG up by 0.68%, while there was no loser on the BSE sectoral front.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Maruti Suzuki up by 1.92%, Reliance Industries up by 1.44%, ICICI Bank up by 1.34%, ITC up by 1.33% and Bajaj Finance up by 1.30%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.49%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.43%, Larsen & Toubro down by 0.15%, Ultratech Cement down by 0.13% and Nestle down by 0.11% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has said special provisions provided to developing nations in all the agreements of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) through special and differential treatment are the non-negotiable matter for the emerging economies and they should be continued. He said the gaps between the developing and developed members have not yet narrowed down in decades but in fact have widened in many areas. And because of that S&DT (Special and Differential Treatment) provisions continue to be relevant. He added S&DT is a treaty-embedded and non-negotiable right for all developing members.

As part of the proposed WTO reforms, developed countries are saying that developing countries are bypassing rules in the name of self-proclaimed development status in the WTO. On the other hand, developing nations, including India, are demandeurs for special and differential treatment. The S&DT allows developing and poor (less developed) countries to enjoy certain benefits, including taking longer time for implementing agreements and binding commitments, and measures to increase trading opportunities for them. Currently, any WTO member can designate itself as a developing country and avail these benefits.

Goyal also pitched for resumption of smooth functioning of the appellate body of the WTO’s dispute settlement mechanism. He said ‘We need to accord priority to the reform needs, especially to the crisis at the appellate body, whose functioning should become more transparent and effective’. The appellate body is a standing body of seven persons that hears appeals from reports issued by panels in disputes brought by WTO members. Currently, the appellate body is unable to review appeals due to positions remaining vacant. The term of the last sitting appellate body member expired on November 30, 2020. Developed countries have also raised issues on working of this body and are seeking reforms in that.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 15793.40, up by 101.25 points or 0.65% after trading in a range of 15786.15 and 15863.15. There were 38 stocks advancing against 12 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Maruti Suzuki up by 1.96%, Reliance Industries up by 1.44%, ITC up by 1.40%, ICICI Bank up by 1.35% and Bajaj Finance up by 1.34%. On the flip side, Power Grid down by 1.46%, ONGC down by 0.69%, Hero MotoCorp down by 0.50%, Bharti Airtel down by 0.45% and Shree Cement down by 0.31% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in green; Nikkei 225 surged 314.37 points or 1.19% to 26,640.53, Straits Times rose 32.10 points or 1.03% to 3,137.95, Taiwan Weighted added 21.64 points or 0.14% to 16,020.89, KOSPI gained 30.87 points or 1.26% to 2,478.25, Jakarta Composite advanced 115.58 points or 1.65% to 7,122.63 and Shanghai Composite was up by 8.12 points or 0.25% to 3,313.53, while Hang Seng was down by 101.48 points or 0.48% to 21,206.73.