Stock Market LIVE Updates: GIFT Nifty indicates a firm start; US, Asian markets gain

Overnight surge in US markets and subsequent gains in Asian equities are pointing towards a firm opening for both Sensex & Nifty. A fall in global crude oil prices towards $83 a barrel raises hopes of easing tensions in the Middle East. Investors are also hoping for easing of geopolitical tensions, and are also expecting for the continuation of the current regime in the general elections, which has helped markets reverse the falling trend over the past few sessions. This is despite FII selling and also uninspiring Q4 results from Reliance and frontline technology companies. The technical landscape suggests Nifty’s major support at 22,200 mark, with interweek support at 22,000 and then at 21,710 mark.

– Q4 PAT misses estimates and consensus sharply

– Operating revenue was also lower than estimate

– Await details on the call as to breakdown for the same

– Costs were higher versus estimate as well

– Focus on understanding recurring costs better

– Tariff order was a negative surprise

– Cut FY25/26 standalone earnings 28 percent or 23 percent

– The company’s long term fundamentals remain solid

– Strong fundamentals as the company will be the only network connected with all five LNG terminals in Gujarat

– A fall in margin offset healthy premium growth of 10 percent on high base

-Expect Growth To Improve From FY25 As Investment In Channels Set In

– Expect Growth To Improve From FY25 As Normalcy In ICICI Bank’s Contribution Set In

– Expect Lower Sensitivity Of VNB, Mortality Costs & Opex

The NSE has retained Hindustan Copper, Vodafone Idea, and Zee Entertainment Enterprises to the F&O ban list for April 24. Biocon, Piramal Enterprises, and SAIL were removed from the said list.

-Company reported a 9% YoY cons increase in rev in Q4 versus estimate of 11% growth ex-acquisitions

-Gross margin improved By 400 bps YoY

-EBITDA margin improve by 190 bps YoY to 16.1%, 90 bps above estimate

-Absolute EBITDA was 3% higher

-Higher depreciation and amortisation charges led to a 6% miss on pre-exceptional PAT

Extreme weather events along with prolonged geopolitical tensions could pose a risk to India’s inflation trajectory, even as growth in the South Asian nation exhibits an uptrend, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its latest bulletin on Tuesday.

“The food price pressures have been interrupting the ongoing disinflation process even as shocks from adverse climate events and geopolitical tensions add uncertainties to the outlook,” the RBI staff said in a ‘State of the Economy’ article.

India is likely to experience more heat-wave days than normal between April and June, the country’s weather office said earlier this month. Read More

Hindustan Unilever (HUL) is expected to report subdued Q4 earnings, as rural demand remained muted, dragging volume growth during the quarter.

According to a Moneycontrol poll of nine brokerage estimates, the FMCG major is likely to report a revenue of Rs 14,913 crore, clocking an on-year fall of around one percent from Rs 15,053 crore in the same quarter of the previous year.

As per the poll, the consumer staples giant will see a profit of Rs 2,435 crore, down by almost four percent from the year-ago quarter.

The EBITDA margin expected to decline owing to higher royalty pay-outs, rising ad spends and lower sales growth, as per experts. Read More

The dollar nursed its wounds on Wednesday following big tumbles against the euro and sterling, hurt by a combination of surprisingly robust European activity data and cooling U.S. business growth.

However the yen remained mired near a 34-year low versus the U.S. currency, even as Japanese officials stepped up intervention warnings.

The dollar index – which measures the currency against six major peers including the euro, sterling and yen – was flat at 105.64 in early Asian trading after slumping 0.4% overnight and touching the lowest level since April 12 at 105.23.

Q4 was a miss but management sounded constructive on revenue growth in FY25

Good commentary may not be enough given burden of higher expectations, and steep valuations

EPS cut of -3.9% and -5.4% for FY25 and FY26

Oil prices rose in early trade on Wednesday, adding to gains in the previous session, after industry data showed a surprise drop in U.S. crude stocks last week, a positive sign for demand, and attention shifted away from hostilities in the Middle East.

Brent crude futures rose 9 cents, or 0.1%, to $88.51 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures gained 10 cents, or 0.11%, to $83.45 a barrel.