The Indian stock market opened on a strong note on Monday, with both benchmark indices showing gains, news agency ANI reported.
The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex surged 290.59 points, opening at 74,138.49, while the National Stock Exchange (NSE) Nifty climbed 82.35 points to begin the session at 22,479.55.
Among Nifty-listed companies, 38 stocks went up while 12 saw declines, ANI reported. IndusInd Bank, SBI Life, Bajaj Finserv, Tata Motors, and Larsen & Toubro emerged as the top gainers, while Infosys, HCL Tech, Wipro, BPCL, and Britannia were among the worst performers in early trade.
The gains come amid mixed global cues. According to banking and market expert Ajay Bagga, China announced measures to stimulate domestic consumption, though the response to these actions has been lukewarm. However, Chinese industrial growth and retail sales data for the first two months of 2025 exceeded estimates, providing some optimism to Asian markets, ANI reported.
He highlighted that the broader economic picture remains uncertain, with a possible slowdown in the US economy and fluctuating policies under President Donald Trump`s second term.
“The US Fed FOMC meet will be the key policy meeting this week. We expect the Fed to remain on hold, citing the uncertainty around Trump 2.0 policy. The key statement to watch from a data dependent Fed will be if it sees the balance shifting to shoring up slowing growth rather than containing inflation. Fed futures are pointing to 3 more rate cuts by the Fed in 2025 and markets will be watching the Fedspeak for any signals towards this,” noted Bagga.
Reciprocal Tariffs by Trump administration remain a concern
A major concern looming over global trade is the upcoming Reciprocal Tariffs announcement by the Trump administration, which will come into effect from April 2.
If India manages to negotiate postponement or exemption on key export items, the markets could react positively.
However, Bagga warned, “Expect volatility leading up to April 2nd. While FPI sales intensity has been waning, past trends suggest that this might not necessarily indicate stability.”
Despite the positive start to the day, market analysts have advised caution owing to the prevailing global policy uncertainty. With the Federal Reserve meeting this week and the upcoming tariff announcements, market movements are expected to remain volatile.
Investors will be keeping a close eye on developments in US trade policies and potential economic slowdowns, which could impact foreign investments in India.
However, India`s strong FII inflows in FY24 and ongoing free trade negotiations with the UK, Canada, and the EU suggest long-term resilience in the country`s economic outlook.
Meanwhile, in the commodities market, gold briefly crossed the USD 3,000-mark before settling slightly lower, ANI reported. Oil prices saw an uptick following US airstrikes on Yemen-based Houthi strongholds, while metals markets are closely monitoring China`s stimulus policies.
(With ANI inputs)
