Bourses continue upward momentum in early afternoon session

Indian markets continued their upward momentum in early afternoon session amid value buying by investors.  Investors went for beaten down but fundamentally strong stocks. Traders took note of report that UK for the first time has agreed to accord non-discriminatory treatment to Indian companies in its public procurement system under the free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries. On May 6, 2025, the two countries announced conclusion of negotiations for the FTA. It will be implemented next year. Sector wise, oil and gas industry stocks remained in focus as Moody's Ratings in its latest report has said that China drove global oil demand growth over the last decade, but now India is poised to take the lead in demand growth over the next decade. China and India are the No. 2 and No. 3 oil consumers in the world. But there are notable differences in demand growth in the two countries. On the global front, Asian markets were trading mostly in red following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight. 

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 81710.32, up by 758.33 points or 0.94% after trading in a range of 80897.00 and 81905.17. There were 28 stocks advancing against 2 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index gained 0.47%, while Small cap index was up by 0.61%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG up by 1.58%, IT up by 1.32%, Utilities up by 1.01%, TECK up by 1.01%, and Energy was up by 0.87%, while Healthcare down by 0.18% was the only losing index on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Eternal up by 3.86%, ITC up by 2.52%, Power Grid up by 2.30%, Adani Ports up by 1.76% and Infosys up by 1.62%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.87% and Maruti Suzuki down by 0.04% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, the negotiations for the proposed India-Oman free trade agreement (FTA) are nearing conclusion with both sides discussing the last issue of the Gulf country's labour-related 'Omanisation' policy, as New Delhi wants the current regime to remain unchanged for its workers. Omanisation is a policy implemented by Oman to boost the employment of its citizens in the private sector. The policy mandates companies to meet specific quotas for hiring Omani nationals. These quotas vary by sector and are periodically revised. 

The negotiations received a much-needed impetus after the visit of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to Muscat in January this year. The talks for the agreement, officially dubbed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), formally began in November 2023. In such agreements, two trading partners either significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on a maximum number of goods traded between them. They also ease norms to promote trade in services and attract investments.

Oman is the third largest export destination among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries for India. India already has a similar agreement with another GCC member UAE which came into effect in May 2022. The bilateral trade was about $9 billion (exports $4.42 billion and imports $4.52 billion) in 2023-24. India's key imports are petroleum products and urea. These account for over 70 per cent of imports. Other key products are propylene and ethylene polymers, pet coke, gypsum, chemicals, and iron and steel.

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24869.35, up by 259.65 points or 1.06% after trading in a range of 24614.05 and 24909.05. There were 48 stocks advancing against 1 stock declining on the index, while 1 stock remained unchanged. 

The top gainers on Nifty were Eternal up by 3.99%, ITC up by 2.55%, Power Grid up by 2.34%, JIO Financial up by 2.22% and SBI Life up by 2.19%. On the flip side, Sun Pharma down by 2.79% was the only loser.

Asian markets were trading mostly in red; Shanghai Composite weakened 26.2 points or 0.78% to 3,353.99, Taiwan Weighted lost 18.72 points or 0.09% to 21,652.24, Straits Times fell 11.58 points or 0.3% to 3,868.51, Hang Seng declined 4.07 points or 0.02% to 23,540.24 and KOSPI was down by 1.58 points or 0.06% to 2,592.09. On the flip side, Jakarta Composite gained 25.99 points or 0.36% to 7,192.97 and Nikkei 225 was up by 174.6 points or 0.47% to 37,160.47.