Indian equity indices opened Monday’s trading session on a higher note. The NSE Nifty 50 opened 68 points or 0.28% higher at 24,809. The BSE Sensex opened 235 points or 0.29% higher at 80,945.
On the same verge, Bank Nifty opened 110 points or 0.20% higher at 54,225. Following the benchmarks, the small and midcap stocks opened the day higher. The Nifty Midcap rose 208 points or 0.37% to open at 57,284.
“The heightened uncertainty surrounding the US-India trade relations will continue to weigh on markets. President Trump’s recent statements regarding the “special US-India ties” and that “there is nothing to worry” indicate improvement in the strained relationship. However, Trump’s comments on the second round of sanctions against Russia and Peter Navarro’s continuing tirade against India are negative factors,” said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments.
“Also, there are rumours of probable restrictions on India’s IT exports, even though trade in services has so far been untouched by reciprocal tariffs. These concerns will continue to influence the market, which got a morale boost from the GST reforms. The euphoria from GST reform was short-lived since the market had already partly discounted the GST rate cuts,” added Vijayakumar.
Let’s take a look at the key factors to watch out for today’s trading session
Early gainers and laggards
In early trade, among the Nifty 50, top gainers at this hour were JSW Steel, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Wipro. On the flip side, the key laggards in the Nifty 50 pack included SBI Life Insurance, HDFC Life Insurance, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Asian Paints, and Nestle India.
Global markets
The Asian markets rose in the early trading hours. Japan led the gains after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba stepped down, a move that ended weeks of political pressure following his election loss. However, the US stock market fell on Friday after a weaker-than-expected jobs report raised concerns about the economy slowing down.