Mr. Mitul Shah - Head of Research at Reliance Securities.
Indian equities ended lower led by weak global cues. Nifty was down 0.2% while broader markets also ended in red as Nifty Mid Cap and Nifty Small Cap were down 0.1% each. Most of the sectoral indices ended in red. Nifty IT and Nifty Media were the biggest laggards which plunged 1.8% and 1.7% respectively followed by Nifty PSU Bank, down 0.8%. Nifty Metal was the primary gainer, up 0.5% followed by Nifty Oil & Gas which ended 0.2% higher.
The U.S. stocks wobbled, as investors assessed a fresh batch of sluggish earnings reports while contemplating the future path of interest rate hikes in the world's biggest economy. All the three major indices ended absolutely flat. Meanwhile Bank of America said it would cut 4,000 jobs despite strong corporate earnings. The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 3.58%. UK's March CPI came in at 10.1% YoY, above the consensus estimate of 9.8% as British households continue to contend with high food and energy bills.
The 4QFY23 earnings season will pick up pace in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, mixed signals are emerging from the US, Europe and Chinese economic data. Inflation although declining, continues to run high in US and Europe. Initial signs of recession are emerging from the US jobs data and the TCS and Infosys management commentary. In India, meanwhile inflation has eased while growth is steadily picking up pace led by accelerated govt capex and PLI investments. Services exports are strong offsetting the slowdown in the merchandise exports and boosting India's forex reserves. In the coming weeks investors will parse the earnings outcome of the March quarter and closely follow the management commentary for further cues.