Sensex, Nifty trade firm in early deals; banks decline on weak Q4 results

Indian equity benchmarks made a positive start on Monday, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street on Friday, amid sustained foreign fund inflows. Sensex and Nifty are trading firm with gains of around half a percent each in early deals, however banking stocks are trading under pressure after Q4 disappointing earnings form SBI and Kotak Mahindra Bank. Market participants took some encouragement as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said that India's foreign exchange reserves rose $1.983 billion to $688.129 billion in the week that ended on April 25, extending gains for the eight straight week. Besides, Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Dr V Anantha Nageswaran expressed confidence in the economy's resilience and said India's economy is in good shape despite the challenging global environment.

On the global front, Asian markets are trading mixed, with some of the major markets in the region closed, including China, Hong Kong and Japan. Traders are optimistic and react to indications China is open to trade talks with the U.S. The Japanese stock market is closed for Children's Day holiday. China remains closed for Labor Day, South Korea is closed for Children's Day and Hong Kong is closed for Buddha's birthday. Back home, in stock specific development, IRCON International rallied on winning a new work order worth Rs 458.14 crore from Northeastern Electric Power Corporation.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 80892.62, up by 390.63 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 80657.71 and 80919.82. There were 24 stocks advancing against 6 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index rose 0.92%, while Small cap index was up by 0.53%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Oil & Gas up by 1.69%, Energy up by 1.37%, IT up by 1.14%, Consumer Discretionary up by 0.98% and TECK up by 0.94%, while Bankex down by 0.78% and Realty down by 0.18% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Adani Ports & SEZ up by 3.92%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.84%, Asian Paints up by 2.37%, Eternal up by 2.24% and TCS up by 1.49%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 5.68%, SBI down by 1.30%, NTPC down by 0.49%, Larsen & Toubro down by 0.40% and Axis Bank down by 0.27% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, expressing confidence over the Indian economy’s resilience, Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) Dr V Anantha Nageswaran has said the economy is in good shape despite the challenging global environment. He also said that the current economic indicators show that the Indian economy is progressing well.

He highlighted the need for India to maintain macroeconomic stability while pursuing innovation-led, inclusive growth strategies. He stressed the need for targeted investments in human capital, technology, infrastructure, and continued structural reforms.

He also highlighted top priority areas, including energy affordability and energy transition; employment generation and artificial intelligence; the share of income accruing to capital and labour owners; education and skilling; the rise of manufacturing and SME; and food security and private sector capital formation.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24493.75, up by 147.05 points or 0.60% after trading in a range of 24400.65 and 24496.55. There were 39 stocks advancing against 11 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Adani Ports & SEZ up by 4.32%, Trent up by 3.15%, Adani Enterprises up by 2.93%, Bajaj Finserv up by 2.77% and Asian Paints up by 2.45%. On the flip side, Kotak Mahindra Bank down by 5.45%, ONGC down by 1.38%, SBI down by 1.12%, JSW Steel down by 0.91% and Dr. Reddy's Lab down by 0.51% were the top losers.

Asian markets are trading mixed; Jakarta Composite gained 33.94 points or 0.5% to 6,849.67 and Straits Times was up by 4.09 points or 0.11% to 3,849.23, while Taiwan Weighted lost 193.23 points or 0.93% to 20,594.41.