More Stories

Informist, Wednesday, Apr. 29, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

---

Equity Alert: Mkts open higher as crude oil prices ease on Trump's comment  

 

MUMBAI--0944 IST--Benchmark indices opened higher as crude oil prices eased to $108 per barrel after US President Donald Trump's comment that Washington will "help free up" ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz. The Brent crude oil prices eased after remaining above $110 per barrel for three consecutive sessions. The assembly elections results for West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Keralam, Assam, and Puducherry will be declared today and the vote counting has begun. Automobile stocks were the major gainers in the indices. 

 

At 0941 IST, the Nifty 50 was at 24283.95 points, up 286.40 points or 1.2% and the BSE Sensex was at 77899.76 points, up 986.26 points or 1.3%. 

 

Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki India were the top gainers among the Nifty 50 constituents, up over 4?ch. Maruti Suzuki's vehicle dispatches for April rose to a record high of 239,646 units, up 33% on year. Bajaj Auto's April sales rose 40% on year to 513,792 units. Eicher Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra rose around 2?ch.     

 

Hindustan Unilever gained nearly 4%. Shriram Finance, Larsen & Toubro, Asian Paints, Tata Consumer Products, and Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone rose around 2?ch. Kotak Mahindra Bank fell more than 4% to become the major laggard in the Nifty 50. The bank said that its net interest margin is likely to fall in 2026-27 (Apr-Mar), but the fall is expected to be lower than in FY26. Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and Tata Consultancy Services fell by over 2% and 1%, respectively. 

 

Vodafone Idea was the top-gainer in the Nifty 200, up over 5%. The telecom operator's stock gained momentum after the government finalised the adjusted gross revenue dues at INR 640.46 billion as of Dec. 31. This is lower than the earlier amount of INR 876.95 billion finalised by the Telecom department, which was later frozen as per the directions of the Supreme Court. Shares of Vedanta rose over 6%. 

 

Kotak Mahindra Bank was the worst-hit stock in the Nifty 200 index. Avenue Supermarts fell nearly 3%. In the Nifty 500, Aster DM Healthcare rose nearly 9%. The company's consolidated net profit for the March quarter rose over 77% on year to INR 1.4 billion. Zen Technologies was the top underperforming stock in the index, declining over 11%. The company's consolidated net profit fell 69% on year to INR 315.3 million in Jan-Mar. 

 

The vote counting in four states – West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Keralam, and Assam and one Union territory –Puducherry is progressing. In West Bengal, Bharatiya Janata Party is ahead of the ruling Trinamool Congress, according to the data from the Election Commission of India's website.  (Adhithya Aji)

---

Equity Alert: Indices seen up; Trump's comments, fall in crude oil to support

 

MUMBAI--0845 IST--The headline equity indices may open higher Monday after US President Donald Trump said the country will "help free up" ships stuck in the Strait of Hormuz from Monday. The indices may track the early gains in Asian indices. The fall in crude oil prices to around $108 per barrel also added to the positive market sentiment. Market will track the Assembly election results for West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry and the March quarter earnings will also be in focus.

 

On Sunday, Trump said he was launching a campaign 'Project Freedom', at the request of countries whose vessels are stranded in the strait, whom he referred to as neutral and innocent bystanders. "Many of these Ships are running low on food, and everything else necessary for largescale crews to stay on board in a healthy and sanitary manner," Trump said in his Truth Social post, adding that any interference in the operation would "unfortunately, have to be dealt with forcefully."

 

Brokerage Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd. expects significant short-term risks for Indian equities, it said in a strategy report. It also sees a potential retail fuel price hike in coming days. However, it remains constructive on a long-term basis, as the brokerage sees a US-Iran negotiation ahead, which could normalise energy prices. The possibility of price hikes in petrol and diesel cannot be ruled out, even though they were not currently increased in the wake of surge in oil prices, a senior government official said Friday.

 

At 0823 IST, the July futures contract of Brent crude was marginally higher at $108.28 a barrel. At 0822 IST, the May futures contract of Gift Nifty was marginally higher at 24254.50, up over 250 points from the Nifty 50's previous close of 23997.55.

 

"Technically, the Nifty (50) index is hovering in a congestion range, with immediate support around the 23550-23800 spot levels and resistance placed around the 24350–24550 spot zones," Vipin Kumaar, assistant vice president of equity research at Globe Capital Market, said. "A breakout in either direction from this range will dictate the next short-term move." Barring the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the other two indices in the US ended higher Friday.  (Arundathi A R)

---

 

Equity Alert: Most indices in Asia gain, KOSPI touches fresh high

 

MUMBAI--0815 IST--Most indices in Asia gained Monday as market participants appeared to cheer US President Donald Trump's 'Project Freedom' to free stranded ships in the Strait of Hormuz, even as details of the plan are awaited. Brent Crude oil futures also fell around 4% from Friday's high to under $110 per barrel. South Korea's benchmark KOSPI hit a fresh record high, with the index up almost 4% in early trade. Markets in Japan and China were closed for a public holiday.

 

"I have told my Representatives to inform them that we will use best efforts to get their Ships and Crews safely out of the Strait. In all cases, they said they will not be returning until the area becomes safe for navigation and everything else. This process, Project Freedom, will begin Monday morning, Middle East time," Trump said in a post on social media platform Truth Social. 

 

However, concerns about the adverse impact of high energy prices and global supply chain disruptions on economic health persist for central banks. A senior deputy governor at the Bank of Korea said that a hawkish view is likely at the upcoming monetary policy meeting this month, Reuters reported. Deputy Governor Ryoo Sang-dai said it was time to consider interest rate hikes. 

 

On Friday, the Japanese yen strengthened by over 3% against the dollar. The move came after the government took measures to prop up the currency, media reports suggested. Earlier in the previous week, Japan's finance minister had flagged concerns about the yen's depreciation and hinted at taking action to curb its weakness. 

 

The following were the levels of major Asian indices at 0803 IST:

 

Index	Level	Change in %
Hang Seng Index	26256.50	1.86
KOSPI	6854.35	3.87
FTSE Singapore Strait Times	4946.75	0.69
S&P/ASX 200 INDEX	8708.00	(-)0.25

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

---

Equity Alert: Tech earnings drive rally; NASDAQ, S&P 500 hit new highs Fri

 

MUMBAI--0735 IST--Concerns around the fragile truce between the US and Iran took a backseat as robust earnings of technology majors drove upward momentum on the Wall Street Friday. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ Composite surged to new all-time-high levels, and closed higher for the fifth consecutive week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average bucked the trend to close in the red Friday, but the index ended the week with gains.

 

Shares of Apple rose after the company's sales in the quarter ended March came in around $57 billion, and its gross profit margin was 49.3%. The results were better than what analysts had expected, boosted primarily by higher demand for the iPhone 17. Shares of the iPhone maker had closed over 3% higher. 

 

"We have these fast-rising profits on one side, and then on the other, we have upward pressures on oil prices and bond yields," Angelo Kourkafas, a senior global investment strategist at Edward Jones, told Reuters. "We've rallied a lot in April, so potentially we may enter some period of consolidation as this pull and push is playing out," he added. 

 

Over this week, Palantir Technologies, Walt Disney Co., and McDonald's Corp are among the key companies which will report their earnings for the March quarter. Shares of chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices will also be in focus ahead of the company's earnings. S&P 500 earnings as of Friday were on track to have climbed 27.8% on year in the March quarter, Reuters reported, citing data from LSEG Data & Analytics. 

 

Following were the closing levels of major US indices on Friday:

 

US Indices	Levels	Change in %
Dow Jones Industrial Average	49499.27	(-)0.31
NASDAQ Composite	25114.443	0.89
S&P 500	7230.12	0.29

 

(Ruchira Kagita)

 

US$1 = INR 94.91

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

 

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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.

 

NSE: National Stock Exchange
NYSE: New York Stock Exchange
NYMEX: New York Mercantile Exchange
SEBI: Securities and Exchange Board of India
RBI: Reserve Bank of India

Internet links:
Securities and Exchange Board of India - http://www.sebi.gov.in
Bombay Stock Exchange - http://www.bseindia.com
National Stock Exchange of India - http://www.nseindia.com
Directory of Indian government websites - http://goidirectory.nic.in
Indian Ministry of Finance - http://www.finmin.nic.in
Reserve Bank of India - http://rbi.org.in
Controller General of Accounts, Government of India - http://www.cga.nic.in
Government's Press Information Bureau - http://www.pib.nic.in

 

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

 

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.

 

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

 

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.