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Informist, Tuesday, Apr. 15, 2025

By Gopika Balasubramanium

MUMBAI – The benchmark equity indices ended sharply higher Tuesday as market sentiment was boosted after the US President Donald Trump announced more tariff exemptions, including on electronic items. He also hinted at announcing some relief from 25% tariffs on automobile imports.

Sentiment was positive across the globe, but Indian equities outperformed most of their global peers. The 50-stock index closed at 23328.55 points, up 500 points or 2.2%, and the BSE Sensex closed at 76734.89 points, up nearly 1,600 points or 2.1%. The broader market indices also gained sharply and outperformed the benchmark indices with mid- and small-cap indices surging more than 3%. India VIX, the Dalal Street's fear gauge, also cooled nearly 20%, to 16.1250.

Trump exempted technology imports across 20 categories from tariffs. These categories include computers, laptops, memory chips, disc drives, and flat-panel displays, Reuters reported. "I'm looking at something to help some of the car companies with it," the Associated Press reported him as saying in an address to reporters at the Oval Office. Following this, automobile stocks gained globally, reversing some of the recent losses they had faced due to the 25% import duties levied by Trump, which came into effect on Apr. 3. Back home, similar gains were seen with select automobile and automobile-part makers rising sharply.

Indusind Bank, Shriram Finance, and Tata Motors were the top gainers in the Nifty 50. A research analyst at a foreign brokerage, who covers the banking sector, said the cut in interest rates by the Reserve Bank of India will lead to a drop in borrowing costs, and some banks such as HDFC Bank have already cut deposit rates. He said private banks such as HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and ICICI Bank are better placed than others in the rate-cut cycle, and are likely to see improvement in their net interest margins from the June quarter. Shares of HDFC Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, and ICICI Bank closed 0.4-3.0% higher.

Select automobile companies, including Tata Motors, and automobile ancillary companies gained sharply as investors took a breather after Trump hinted at possible relief from the 25% tariff imposed on automobile imports into the US. Tata Motors came off the day's high slightly and closed 4.6% higher. Others such as Samvardhana Motherson, Bharat Forge, and Sona BLW Precision Forgings closed over 7% higher. Business from the US contributes to 20-45% of total sales for these companies, according to a Geojit Financial Services report. Other Indian original equipment makers--Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto, and TVS Motor Company--rose 3.0-3.8%. 

Bucking the trend in the Nifty 50, Hindustan Unilever and ITC closed 0.2% and 0.3% lower, respectively. Other stocks such as Tata Consumer Products and Nestle India also traded in the red for most of the session, but came off the lows to close slightly higher. The stocks had risen sharply in the past few sessions as investors showed buying interest in domestic consumer-facing companies amid uncertainty in the global markets. The Nifty FMCG index had risen in the past four weeks, gaining over 7% during this period.

On the sectoral front, Nifty Realty gained the most and closed 5.6% higher. Anant Raj Ltd., Macrotech Developers, and Prestige Estates Projects closed 6.7-8.5% higher. Shares of Macrotech Developers gained after brothers Abhishek and Abhinandan Lodha settled their disputes relating to the use of the brand name 'Lodha', through mediation. Macrotech Developers will retain exclusive right to use the brand names 'Lodha' and 'Lodha group', as per the agreement. Other stocks in the Nifty Realty index, such as DLF, Sobha Ltd., and Oberoi Realty, closed 5-6% higher. Nifty Metal and Nifty Auto were among the top gainers and closed 3.2% and 3.4% higher, respectively.

Select defence stocks such as Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, Intellect Design Arena, and Data Patterns (India) closed 9.4-13.8% higher. Max Healthcare Institute, Aster DM Healthcare, Hindustan Petroleum Corp., and Sumitomo Chemical India were the worst-hit within the Nifty 500 and closed down 0.8-2.2% lower.

* Of the Nifty 50 stocks, 48 rose and two fell

* Of the Sensex stocks, 28 rose and two fell

* On the NSE, 2,547 stocks rose, 377 fell, and 85 were unchanged

* On the BSE, 3,302 stocks rose, 785 fell, and 169 were unchanged

* Nifty Realty: up 5.6%; Nifty Auto: up 3.4%; Nifty FMCG: up 0.3%

BSE                                               NSE

Sensex: 76734.89, up 1577.63 points or 2.1%       Nifty 50: 23328.55, up 500 points or 2.2%

End

US$1 = INR 85.77

Edited by Rajeev Pai

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