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Informist, Thursday, Apr. 16, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Indices open higher on reports of US-Iran ceasefire extension

 

MUMBAI--0950 IST--The domestic market extended gains from the previous session, on hopes of another round of talks between the US and Iran. The two countries have agreed in principle to extend the two-week ceasefire to allow time for further diplomatic talks, The Associated Press reported Wednesday, quoting regional officials. Reacting to the positive developments, crude oil prices fell to a low of $94 per barrel and helped the domestic indices to gain for the second session.

 

Broader market indices outperformed the benchmark peers in early trade, but pared gains later. The volatility index India VIX was almost 4% lower at 17.9450, which indicated that nervousness among investors had eased. At 0924 IST, the Nifty 50 was up over 140 points or 0.6% at 24380.05. The BSE Sensex was at 78635.57, up over 520 points or 0.7%. Less than 20 constituents were down in the Nifty 50 index.

 

Among sectoral indices, the Nifty Metal was the top gainer. All the constituents of the index were trading higher in early trade. The Nifty IT was the second. It was up over 1%, with all its constituents in the green. Information technology stocks contributed the most to Nifty 50's rise. Infosys, Tech Mahindra, and Tata Consultancy Services were up over 1?ch. Wipro was up 0.6% ahead of its March quarter earnings later in the day.

 

Financial services stocks also supported the 50-stock index. HDFC Life Insurance Co., Bajaj Finance, and Bajaj Finserv were up around 1?ch. HDFC Life Insurance gained ahead of its March quarter results later in the day. Among banking stocks, ICICI Bank was up nearly 1%, while HDFC Bank was marginally higher.

 

Among individual stocks, Hindalco Industries was the top gainer in the Nifty 50 index. The stock was up nearly 3%. It was followed by metal stocks Tata Steel and JSW Steel, up almost 2?ch.

 

Quick-commerce stocks also performed better, with Eternal in the Nifty 50 index and Swiggy in the Nifty 500 index gaining around 1%. Among the Nifty 200 stocks, Hindustan Zinc was the top gainer, up nearly 4%. It was followed by Hindalco Industries and National Aluminium Co., up nearly 3?ch. Firstsource Solutions was the top gainer in the Nifty 500 index, up over 15%.

 

Tata Consumer Products was the biggest laggard in the 50-stock index, down around 1%. It was followed by Bharti Airtel and Bajaj Auto, down nearly 1?ch. Tejas Networks was the biggest laggard in the Nifty 500 index, down over 4%. The stock was down after the company's Jan-Mar net loss got widened from the previous quarter. On the BSE, SpiceJet hit the 5% upper circuit at INR 14.14.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: Most Asian mkts up, hopes of US-Iran talks support momentum

 

MUMBAI--0815 IST--Most Asian indices were up Thursday, with hopes of a peace deal between the US and Iran keeping the momentum positive. Brent crude oil futures were also largely unchanged from Wednesday at around $95 per barrel. 

 

China's benchmark CSI 300 was up 0.6% in early trade as the country's GDP for the March quarter expanded 5% on year to touch 33.42 trillion yuan, beating economists' expectations. Reuters had estimated China's GDP to grow 4.8% on year in the first quarter of 2026. The country's services sector grew 5.2% on year and industrial output was up 6.1% on year. On a quarterly basis, China's GDP grew 1.3% in the first quarter, matching forecasts.

 

Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index was almost 2% higher after being flat throughout the session Wednesday. Shares of Daikin Industries soared almost 14?ter Elliott Investment Management said it has acquired stake in the company. The investment manager said Daikin should improve its margins and shareholder returns, and review non-core assets, according to a report by Reuters. Shares of Nikkei 225 heavyweight Advantest Corp. were also nearly 2% higher.

 

In South Korea, the benchmark KOSPI gained over 2%. The broader market KOSDAQ underperformed the benchmark index, and was up only around 1.2%. Among some of the key stocks, Samsung SDS Co. rose almost 4?ter KKR said it will buy $820 million of Samsung SDS' convertible bonds, Reuters reported. Meanwhile, key indices in Australia and Singapore displayed some negative bias.

 

Following were the levels of major Asian indices at 0802 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
CSI 300 Index	4719.5794	0.73
Hang Seng Index	26158.04	0.81
Nikkei 225 Day	59477.60	2.31
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3822.06	1.37
KOSPI	6224.82	2.19
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	5005.67	(-)0.31
S&P/ASX 200 INDEX	8958.10	(-)0.23

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

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Equity Alert: Indices seen a tad higher on hopes of US-Iran peace talks

 

MUMBAI--0800 IST--Benchmark indices are likely to open slightly higher on Thursday amid reports that the US and Iran may look to extend the ceasefire and even hold a second round of talks to end the West Asia war. Most Asian indices were higher in early trade as crude oil futures have stayed around $95 per barrel for about three days now.

 

At 0758 IST, GIFT Nifty April contracts traded slightly above 24300 points, indicating the Nifty 50 index may open around 70 points or 0.3% higher. Wednesday, the Nifty 50 index had closed at 24231.30 points, up nearly 400 points or 1.6%.

 

Technical analysts expect the buying momentum in the market to continue in the near term. The intraday support for the Nifty 50 is seen at 23900-24000 points and the resistance is expected near 24500 points.

 

Some of the developments globally have made market partcipants confident that the war between the US and Iran may end soon. There were media reports on Wednesday that the two countries have agreed in principle to extend the two-week ceasefire. The original

two-week period is due to end Apr. 22.

 

The New York Times reported that senior Pakistani mediators reached Tehran on Wednesday in order to keep the prospects for futher talks alive. Israel is also considering a possible ceasefire against Iran-backed Hezbollah, three Israeli officicals told NYT. 

Indices in the US were mixed on Wednesday with S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closing 0.8-1.6% higher while the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.2% down.

 

However, some risks related to the US-Iran conflict remain with the US halting the goods going into and leaving Iran by sea. Iran's military has said it would try to stop ships headling to other countries if the blockade by the US continues, the NYT report said.

 

On the domestic front, the March quarter earnings are likely to lead to stock price reactions. Information technology major Wipro is scheduled to report its earnings later in the day. Market participants will keep an eye on the company's guidance for the June quarter. While some analysts expect the company to guide for 0-2% growth in revenue for the June quarter, others expect it to guide for a dip of as much as 2%. Among others, HDFC Life Insurance Co. will report its quarterly earnings. (Anshul Choudhary)

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Equity Alert: US indices end mixed Wed; NASDAQ, S&P 500 hit new highs

 

MUMBAI--0726 IST--The US benchmark indices ended mixed Wednesday. The NASDAQ Composite index and the S&P 500 rose to all-time-highs, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed in the red. Market participants cheered the prospects of a fresh round of peace talks between the US and Iran. US President Donald Trump has said Iran is eager to strike a deal and that the war is "very close" to being over. Brent Crude Oil futures were largely unchanged since the week started at around $95 per barrel.

 

The NASDAQ Composite ended in the green for the eleventh consecutive day and the S&P 500 closed higher for the third straight session. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was dragged down by heavyweight Caterpillar Inc., which fell 3%. "We're basically back to where we were in late February in terms of the sentiment indicators and the valuation," Tim Hayes, chief global investment strategist at Ned Davis Research, told CNBC.

 

Earnings-driven momentum was also seen on Wall Street. Bank of America, the country's second-largest lender, beat analysts' forecast on earnings for the quarter ended March. The lender's revenue grew 7% on year to $30.3 billion during Jan-Mar, and earnings per share rose 25% on year to $1.11. The stock closed almost 2% higher. Another banking major, Morgan Stanley, reported its earnings for the period. The bank's net revenue climbed 15% on year to $20.6 billion, and it saw record revenues from its equities, institutional, and wealth management businesses. Its shares ended around 4.5% higher.

 

In other news, Trump once again lashed out against Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell. "I'll have to fire him, OK, if he's not leaving on time," Trump said IN an interview with Fox Business, according to a report by The Guardian. Powell is set to retire on May 15, and the White House has been pushing for Kevin Warsh to replace Powell.

 

Following are the closing levels of US indices Wednesday:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
S&P 500	7022.95	0.80
NASDAQ Composite	24016.017	1.59
Dow Jones Industrial Average	48463.72	(-)0.15

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

 

US$1 = INR 93.27

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Ashish Shirke

 

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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