Opening Bell:
Gift Nifty is up by 125.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market
On Thursday, Asian markets saw declines mirroring the trends from Wall Street overnight, following the US Federal Reserve’s decision to maintain interest rates. Japan’s Nikkei 225 slipped by 0.70%, alongside a 0.4% drop in the Topix index. South Korea’s Kospi and Kosdaq both saw marginal decreases of 0.1%. Additionally, futures for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index suggested a subdued start.
On Tuesday, US stocks closed in negative territory amidst deliberations over economic indicators indicating increased labour costs and declining consumer confidence, coinciding with a pivotal Federal Reserve policy announcement regarding interest rates. The S&P 500 retreated by 79.92 points, equivalent to a 1.56% decrease, concluding at 5,036.25 points. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq Composite saw a decline of 325.26 points, marking a 2.00% decrease to settle at 15,664.13. The Dow Jones Industrial Average experienced a downturn of 574.08 points, translating to a 1.47% drop, closing at 37,823.57.
Stocks News:
đ Adani Total Gas: Reporting a net profit of Rs 168 crore for the March FY24 quarter, the city gas distribution company witnessed a robust growth of 71.5 percent compared to the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. This surge was driven by strong operating performance, attributed to the lower cost of natural gas. Revenue from operations (excluding excise duty) also saw a notable increase of 4.7 percent year-on-year, reaching Rs 1,167 crore for the quarter, with sales volume climbing by 20 percent YoY.
đ Ambuja Cements: Despite facing some challenges in operating numbers, the cement company achieved a net profit of Rs 532.3 crore for the quarter ending March FY24, marking a 5.9 percent growth over the same period last year. Revenue from operations showed a promising growth of 12.3 percent year-on-year, reaching Rs 4,780.3 crore for the quarter, supported by a rise in sales volume from 8.1 million metric tons to 9.5 million metric tons.
đ Adani Wilmar: Despite a decline in topline and other income, Adani Wilmar, a subsidiary of the Adani Group, recorded a net profit of Rs 156.75 crore for the March FY24 quarter, marking a significant 67.5 percent increase over the previous year. This growth was primarily driven by robust operating performance. Revenue from operations fell by 4.6 percent year-on-year, totaling Rs 13,238 crore for the quarter.
đ Tata Motors: The Tata Group company reported total sales of 77,521 units for April, indicating a notable increase of 11.4 percent compared to the same period last year. Domestic sales surged by 12 percent to 76,399 units during the same period, with total commercial vehicle sales witnessing a remarkable 31 percent year-on-year jump to 29,538 units. Additionally, passenger vehicle sales showed a modest increase of 2 percent YoY, reaching 47,983 units for the month.
đ Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net bought Rs 1,071.93 crore shares, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) pumped in Rs 1,429.11 crore on April 30, provisional data from the NSE showed.
Domestic and International Events
- India’s eight core sectors posted a growth of 5.2% in March, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on April 30. Though the growth in India’s core sector during the previous month was slower compared to February 2024, which came in at 7.1%, it was higher than March 2023 at 4.2%. The output of the eight core sectors, which includes coal, crude oil, steel, cement, electricity, fertilisers, refinery products, and natural gas was 7.5% in 2023-24 lower year-on-year as against 7.8% in 2022-23. The fall in core sector growth in March was due to five of the eight sectors seeing their output either contract or grow at a slower pace compared to the previous month, with crude oil production posting a growth of just 2% compared to 7.9% in February 2024.
- In April 2024, India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections reached a record high of Rs 2.1 lakh crore, marking a 12.4% year-on-year growth. This surge was propelled by a robust increase in domestic transactions (up 13.4%) and imports (up 8.3%), as per the finance ministry’s statement on May 1. Compared to the same period last year, when Rs 1.87 lakh crore was collected, the net GST revenue for April 2024 stands at Rs 1.92 lakh crore, showing an impressive 15.5% growth after refunds. Over the years, monthly GST collections have shown a steady rise, from averaging under Rs 1 lakh crore per month in its first year (2017-18) to averaging Rs 1.51 lakh crore in 2022-23. Additionally, the gross collections for the first month of FY25 were 17.81% higher compared to March, reaching Rs 1.78 lakh crore.
- The US Federal Reserve, aligning with Wall Street predictions, maintained the benchmark interest rates within the 5.25% – 5.50% range for the sixth consecutive meeting. While indicating a leaning towards potential future reductions in borrowing costs, the Fed expressed concerns over recent underwhelming inflation data, hinting at a possible pause in efforts to achieve greater economic balance.
- On Wednesday, oil prices experienced a 2% drop to a seven-week low due to an unexpected increase in US crude inventories, alongside prospects of a ceasefire agreement in the Middle East. Persistent US inflation also contributed to dampened expectations regarding the pace of interest rate cuts and oil demand growth. Brent futures declined by $1.39, or 1.6%, to $84.94 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude decreased by $1.39, or 1.7%, to $80.54.
| EMERGING | LATEST | % 1D |
| Hang Seng | 17,763 | 0.1 % |
| Shanghai Composite | 3,105 | (0.3) % |
| DEVELOPED | LATEST | % 1D |
| Dow Jones | 37,903 | 0.2 % |
| DAX | 17,932 | (1.0) % |
| FTSE 100 | 8,121 | (0.3) % |
| Nikkei | 38,274 | (0.3) % |
| Straits Times | 3,293 | 0.3 % |
