Bourses remain higher in early afternoon session

Indian equity markets continued their gaining momentum in early afternoon session ahead of March F&O expiry. Traders took support with the report that All-India Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPI-AL) and Rural Labourers (CPI-RL) (Base: 1986-87=100) decreased by 7 points each, for the month of February 2025, falling to 1309 and 1321 points, respectively. The year-on-year inflation rates based on CPI-AL and CPI-RL for February 2025 were recorded at 4.05% and 4.10%, respectively, compared to 7.43% and 7.36% in February 2024. The corresponding figures for January 2025 stood at 4.61% for CPI-AL and 4.73% for CPI-RL. On the global front, Asian markets are trading mostly in red as manufacturing sector in Japan continued to contract in March, and at a faster pace. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump signaled flexibility on upcoming reciprocal tariffs set to be imposed April 2. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 77892.61, up by 987.10 points or 1.28% after trading in a range of 77179.35 and 77901.50. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 1.42%, while Small cap index was up by 1.38%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were PSU up by 2.52%, Utilities up by 2.39%, Bankex up by 2.27%, Power up by 2.21% and Realty was up by 2.13%, while there were no losing sectoral indices on the BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 4.78%, NTPC up by 4.37%, Power Grid up by 2.76%, SBI up by 2.52% and Axis Bank up by 2.49%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 2.48%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.76%, Indusind Bank down by 1.57%, Eternal down by 1.12% and Infosys down by 0.48% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Jitendra Singh on the occasion of the release of ‘India Bioeconomy Report 2025’ (IBER 2025) has said that India's bio-economy has witnessed a remarkable 16-fold rise in 10 years of the past one decade, from $10 billion in 2014 to an impressive $165.7 billion in 2024. He further emphasized that this exponential growth is a testament to the government's commitment to fostering biotechnology as a key pillar of India's future economic growth. According to the said report, the sector is contributing 4.25% to the overall GDP. The sector has shown a CAGR of 17.9% over the past four years, showcasing India’s potential as a global biotech powerhouse.

The Minister has also unveiled BioSaarthi, a pioneering global mentorship initiative aimed at nurturing biotech startups. Designed as a six-month cohort, BioSaarthi will facilitate structured mentor-mentee engagements, offering personalized guidance to emerging entrepreneurs in the biotech sector. Singh noted that this initiative will strengthen India’s biotech ecosystem by fostering innovation, enhancing industry-academia collaboration, and positioning Indian startups for global success. The initiative would engage overseas experts, particularly from Indian diaspora as international mentors who would volunteer to give back to the society.

Underscoring the role of the government's policies in driving this transformation, the Minister highlighted the recently approved BIO-E3 Policy (Biotechnology for Economy, Employment, and Environment) which aims to accelerate research, innovation, and entrepreneurship in the sector. Under this policy, initiatives such as Bio-AI Hubs, Bio foundries, and bio-enabler hubs will be set up to integrate advanced technologies with biomanufacturing. Singh also announced that Assam has become the first state to adopt the BioE3 framework, marking a significant step toward pan-India implementation.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 23638.90, up by 288.50 points or 1.24% after trading in a range of 23433.50 and 23643.55. There were 41 stocks advancing against 9 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Kotak Mahindra Bank up by 4.80%, NTPC up by 4.47%, Power Grid up by 2.72%, Axis Bank up by 2.68% and Bharat Electronics up by 2.46%. On the flip side, Titan Company down by 2.51%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 1.81%, Indusind Bank down by 1.73%, Trent down by 1.13% and Infosys down by 0.54% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mostly in red; Taiwan Weighted lost 102.46 points or 0.46% to 22,106.64, Jakarta Composite plunged 93.12 points or 1.51% to 6,165.06, Nikkei 225 slipped 68.57 points or 0.18% to 37,608.49, KOSPI dropped 11.06 points or 0.42% to 2,632.07 and Shanghai Composite was down by 3.93 points or 0.12% to 3,360.90. On the flip side, Hang Seng advanced 5.19 points or 0.02% to 23,694.91 and Straits Times was up by 7.78 points or 0.2% to 3,934.23.