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Informist, Friday, Apr. 24, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Escalating tensions in Strait of Hormuz keep Asian mkts jittery

 

MUMBAI--0828 IST--Most markets in Asia fell in early trade Friday as the military standoff between the US and Iran continued near the Strait of Hormuz, and Brent Crude oil futures remained above $106 per barrel, up almost 5% from Thursday's lows of around $102 a barrel. US President Donald Trump announced that the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon has been extended by three more weeks, but market participants remained cautious.

 

Japan's consumer inflation rose 1.5% on year in March, slightly higher than the 1.3% rise in February. Core inflation, which excludes food prices, rose 1.8% on year. This was in line with what Reuters has pencilled in but higher than the 1.6% rise seen in February. "The BoJ (Bank of Japan) is likely to focus on the former, placing weight on rising inflation expectations, while the government, viewing the economic slowdown from deteriorating terms of trade as a risk, would focus on the latter," CNBC quoted a note from Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank. Inflation, however, remains below the Bank of Japan's target of 2%. 

 

Meanwhile, DowJones Newswires reported that South Korea's exports are likely to be driven by semiconductors in April, citing Citigroup analysts. The country's outbound chip shipments may rise 46.3% on year and imports are likely to rise 12.9% on year in April, the media agency reported. This would mean that South Korea's trade surplus will be $24.8 billion. South Korea's benchmark index KOSPI fell during early hours of trade after hitting fresh all-time-highs for three consecutive days. 

 

Following were the levels of major Asian indices at 0819 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
CSI 300 Index	4757.9135	(-)0.59
Hang Seng Index	25740.97	(-)0.67
Nikkei 225 Day	59327.84	0.32
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3711.51	(-)0.13
KOSPI	6452.23	(-)0.36
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	4906.87	(-)0.75
S&P/ASX 200 INDEX	8755.90	(-)0.43

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

 

 

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Equity Alert: Seen range bound Fri; crude oil price, Infosys key factors

 

MUMBAI--0825 IST--Domestic headline indices are likely to move in a range Friday due to geopolitical concerns and rise in Brent crude oil prices, analysts say. The price of crude oil is currently above $105 a barrel. Uncertainty around US-Iran peace talks and the continued blockade of the Strait of Hormuz remain as an overhang on the market sentiment. The corporate results of Reliance Industries and Shriram Finance, due later in the day, will be keenly watched by investors. Infosys will also be a key focus, as it detailed its March quarter results post market hours Thursday.

 

The April futures contract of Gift Nifty suggests the Nifty 50 will move in a range. At 0822 IST, the contract was up 0.4% at 24209, more than 35 points higher than the 50-stock index's previous close of 24173.05. At 0823 IST, the June futures contract of Brent crude was trading nearly 1% higher at $105.94 per barrel. The crude oil price is above the $100-a-barrel mark for the third straight day.

 

"An upside can be seen in the market if the Nifty 50 crosses 24350 level. Till that level, a rangebound movement is expected," Rupak De, senior technical analyst at LKP Securities, said. He expects the Nifty 50 to find support at 24150.

 

In the latest development, US President Donald Trump announced a three-week ceasefire extension between Israel and Lebanon. He said a White House meeting between the Israeli and Lebanese delegations "went very well," Al Jazeera reported. Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, said that Iran's state institutions are continuing "to act with unity, purpose and discipline", saying this reflects "the failure of Israel's terrorist killings" during the war. According to a CNBC report, Trump has ordered the US military to "shoot and kill" any Iranian boats laying mines in the strait, adding that the US would intensify its efforts to clear mines that have helped choke off global shipping.

 

Information technology major Infosys posted a nearly 28% on-quarter rise in its consolidated net profit for the March quarter to INR 85.01 billion. This was way above analysts' estimate of INR 75.56 billion. Its consolidated revenue rose 2% sequentially to INR 464.02 billion, slightly below the consensus view of INR 465.79 billion. Infosys reported a sharper-than-expected sequential decline in Jan-Mar revenue in constant currency terms, falling 1.3%.

 

Nuvama Institutional Equities has maintained its 'buy' recommendation on Infosys and kept its target price unchanged at INR 1,650. The brokerage has raised its 2026-27 (Apr-Mar) earnings-per-share estimate for the company by 3% and FY28 estimate by 1%. It sees Infosys' FY27 growth recover on easing of macro concerns and when generative-artificial intelligence reaches inflection point.  Emkay Global Financial Services has also retained its 'buy' call on Infosys and kept its target price unchanged at INR 1,450.

 

However, Nirmal Bang Securities has cut its target price on Infosys by 8.7% to INR 1,610, while maintaining its 'buy' recommendation. It sees the company continue with its AI-led investments. The brokerage expects large and mega deals to limit Infosys' margin expansion. Nirmal Bang also expects the company's revenue growth to be stronger in the first half of FY27 than the second half. 

 

Reliance Industries is expected to report an on-year fall of nearly 2% in consolidated net profit to nearly INR 191 billion for the March quarter. The company's top line is expected to be INR 2.8 trillion, up over 8% on year. Shriram Finance is expected to post a 28% on-year rise in its net profit to INR 27.43 billion for the March quarter. Its bottom line is expected to rise sharply on year on healthy growth in net interest income and assets under management.

 

In the global market, Asian indices showed a mixed trend, with most in the red. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was the worst performer among the pack. In the US, all the three indices settled lower Thursday.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: US indices fall Thursday; fears around peace in West Asia weigh

 

MUMBAI--0740 IST--US indices ended lower Thursday even as concerns about a positive outcome from likely peace talks between the US and Iran, and Israel and Lebanon continued to dampen sentiment. US President Donald Trump said Israel and Lebanon would extend their ceasefire for another three weeks, but this announcement failed to enthuse market participants. Fears surrounding the military impasse in the Strait of Hormuz continued to cast a shadow.

 

"I have ordered the United States Navy to shoot and kill any boat, small boats though they may be (Their naval ships are ALL, 159 of them, at the bottom of the sea!), that is putting mines in the waters of the Strait of Hormuz," Trump said in a post on social media. Brent crude oil futures remained high above $100 per barrel.

 

On Wall Street, some stocks were in focus because of earnings for the quarter ended March. Lockheed Martin fell almost 5?ter the company's revenue missed analysts' expectations to be flat on year at $18.0 billion. The defence giant's net earnings declined to $1.5 billion from $1.71 billion a year ago. Shares of Tesla fell nearly 4?ter the company's revenue for the March quarter missed the consensus forecast. The revenue came in at $22.39 billion, lower than the anticipated $22.64 billion, CNBC reported. 

 

In other news, the S&P Global US Flash Purchasing Managers' Index showed business activity in the US rebounded in April, but only slightly. The composite output rose to a three-month high of 52.0 in April from 50.3 in March. The growth in manufacturing was better than in services. The rate of expansion in services was the second-weakest in the past year as demand cooled, the report said. "There was better news from manufacturing, but here an expansion of output and orders could be partly traced to the building of safety stocks," Chris Williamson, the chief business economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said in the report.

 

Further, the number of people filing for fresh unemployment claims rose 6,000 to 214,000 in the week ended Apr. 18. The Wall Street Journal was expecting this figure to be at 210,000, but the data is not alarming.

 

Following are the closing levels of US indices on Thursday:

 

US Indices	Levels	Change in %
Dow Jones Industrial Average	49310.32	(-)0.36
NASDAQ Composite	24438.504	(-)0.89
S&P 500	7108.40	(-)0.41

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

 

US$1 = INR 94.10

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

 

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

 

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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