Sensex 250 pts higher at 76,150; IT up 2%, Auto, Metal, Cons Dur, Realty gain 1%

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Benchmark equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty50 opened higher on Wednesday, amid improving global cues.

At opening bell, the BSE Sensex was higher by 272 points, or 0.36 per cent, at 76,173.41, and the Nifty50 was at 23,028.20, up 70.95 points, or 0.31 per cent.

After the opening bell, on the 30-stock BSE Sensex, 9 stocks were trading lower, while the rest climbed. Gains were led by Infosys (up 1.60 per cent), followed by Zomato, TCS, HCLTech, and Tech Mahindra, while on the flip side, losses were capped by NTPC (down 0.49 per cent), followed by Nestle India, Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paint, and Sun Pharma.

On the Nifty50, 29 stocks were trading higher, while the rest declined. Gains were led by Bajaj Auto (up 4.40 per cent), followed by Infosys, BEL, Cipla, and Hero MotoCo, while losses were capped by Tata Consumer Products (down 1.02 per cent), followed by JSW Steel, HDFC Life, Dr Reddy’s, and Nestle India.

Across sectors, the Media and IT indices were the top gainers, climbing 1.59 per cent, and 1.54 per cent, respectively, followed by Auto (up 0.92 per cent). Other narrow market indices trading higher included Nifty Bank, Financial Services, Metal, Pharma, PSU Bank, Private Bank, Realty, Healthcare, Consumer Durables, and Oil, while the FMCG index was down 0.38 per cent.

In the broader markets, the Nifty Midcap 100 was ahead by 0.81 per cent, and the Nifty Smallcap 100 was higher by 0.98 per cent. The India VIX, India’s risk gauge, was higher by 0.64 per cent, at 18.31.

Indian benchmark indices BSE Sensex and Nifty50 broke their two day losing streak to close higher on Tuesday, and the US markets also climbed up from the selloff on Monday engendered by intensifying competition in the AI space due to the emergence of China-built generative artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek’s AI model.

Investors here would be looking to continue this positive momentum, while tracking December quarter results from companies along with developments around a number of macroeconomic events on the horizon, including the US Federal Reserve’s interest rate decision and inflation outlook in the face of President Donald Trump’s tariff threats, the Budget 2025-26 presentation on Saturday, February 1, and the Reserve Bank of India’s policy decision next week.

The Sensex ended Tuesday’s session at 75,901, with a gain of 535 points, or 0.7 per cent. The Nifty 50 index closed at 22,957, with a gain of 128 points, or 0.6 per cent. The indices had rallied up to 1.5 per cent intra-day.

However, January 2025 is shaping up to be the worst month on record for stock corrections, with 2,461 companies listed on the BSE seeing a drop in value, so far. This eclipses the previous high of 2,334 stocks in March 2024. The ratio of advancing to declining stocks stands at 0.82 — only marginally better than February 2023’s 0.81.

Moreover, according to BlackRock Investment Institute, India’s valuations are not “materially expensive” compared to peers but the returns over the next five years could be in low double digits. In its 2025 ‘Global Outlook Report’, the research firm said India’s high price to earnings (P/E) ratio is on account of its relatively strong growth outlook, while forecasting that corporate earnings are expected to remain strong over the long run.

In other news, the forward premium on the USD/INR one-month contract declined by 35 basis points (bps), while the one-year forward premium fell by 10 bps to 2.19 per cent following the RBI’s announcement of a USD/INR buy/sell swap auction worth $5 billion for a six-month tenor, scheduled for January 31. READ MORE

Separately, K Satyanarayana Raju, managing director and chief executive officer, Canara Bank, said the RBI’s steps to address liquidity conditions support the expectation of a rate cut, in a telephonic interview with Abhijit Lele.

Elsewhere, US President Donald Trump has grouped India alongside China and Brazil as “tremendous tariff makers”, vowing to impose tariffs on countries he claims harm the United States. During a separate telephonic conversation, Trump urged PM Narendra Modi to boost India’s procurement of American security equipment to foster a “fair” bilateral trade relationship.

That apart, Pranjul Bhandari, chief India and Indonesia economist and managing director (global research), HSBC, writes that with India’s 2025-26 (FY26) Budget to be presented on February 1, followed closely by the Reserve Bank of India’s policy meeting on February 7, policymakers are facing a particularly complex environment. In that backdrop, Policy stimulus could help get GDP growth back up to 6.5 per cent. But what form should that take: A higher fiscal impulse, or looser monetary policy?

Meanwhile, in the primary markets, in the mainline section, Denta Water and Infra Solutions Limited IPO will list on the bourses, and Dr. Agarwal’s Health Care Limited IPO will open of subscription.

In the SME section, Malpani Pipes And Fittings Limited IPO will open for subbscription, and the basis of allotment for H.M. Electro Mech Limited IPO and GB Logistics Commerce Limited IPO will get finalised today.

Elsewhere, in the Asia-Pacific region, Japan and Australian stocks rose on Wednesday, while Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and China markets were closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 was 0.42 per cent higher, while the Topix advanced 0.39 per cent, reversing from the previous session’s losses. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was ahead by 0.83 per cent.

In the US markets, technology stocks regained ground on Tuesday, a day after a low-cost Chinese AI model rattled markets, while traders rotated back into the dollar from safe-haven currencies.

The tech rebound boosted Wall Street’s main stock indices, with Nasdaq adding about 2 per cent and chip giant Nvidia up 9 per cent. The S&P 500 gained about 0.9 per cent and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.3 per cent.

Nasdaq shares had tumbled on Monday as Nvidia fell 17 per cent, losing nearly $593 billion of its value in the biggest one-day market capitalization loss in history.

Investors’ reassessment of developments in the AI sector will also heighten investor interest in this week’s earnings at Microsoft, Tesla and Meta. Executives can expect to be asked whether they still plan to spend so much on computing power.

European tech stocks stabilised on Tuesday and the broad STOXX 600 share benchmark hit a new intraday high, a sign of how strongly shares have been performing in recent weeks.

Trade tensions over US President Donald Trump’s policies remained in the mix, supporting the dollar and driving investors back out of Treasuries.

Trump still plans to make good on his promise to issue tariffs on Canada and Mexico on Saturday, a White House spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday. The spokesperson said Trump is also still weighing fresh tariffs on China for Saturday.

US Treasuries, which rallied on Monday as part of the risk-off move, were little changed, with benchmark 10-year yields last trading at 4.538 per cent.

There are also central bank meetings for bond and currency investors to grapple with. The Federal Reserve is expected to keep rates steady at its meeting which concludes on Wednesday, and the European Central Bank is expected to cut rates by 25 bps on Thursday.

US consumer confidence weakened for a second straight month in January amid renewed concerns about the labor market and inflation, while a new report from the US Commerce Department suggested business investment in equipment was poised to pick up in the first quarter.

Oil prices settled up on Tuesday, bouncing back from multi-week lows, after the White House reiterated its tariff plans for Canadian and Mexican imports.

Gold, which had slipped as investors liquidated bullion to cover losses, added 0.8 per cent to $2,762 an ounce.

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