Equities Claw Back Big Chunk Of Tariff-Led Fall 

HIGHLIGHTS
 •  Indian stocks stage strong recovery 
 •  OMCs stocks soar as government hikes LPG prices
 •  NBCC shares up nearly 5% on ₹1.21 billion work orders, MoU with RailTel
 •  Jio Financial shares rise 6% on foray into loans against securities
 •  Lodha shares jump 4% on March quarter update, surpasses FY25 guidance
 •  Info Edge jump 5% as firm reports 19% YoY growth in overall billing in Q4

Indian equity markets staged a strong recovery today, ending a three-day losing streak as broad-based buying lifted benchmark indices. The Nifty 50 jumped past the 22,500 mark, buoyed by gains across all sectors, mirroring positive sentiment in Asian and European markets.

The rebound came despite overnight weakness in US markets, where concerns over a deepening tariff war persisted. While the European Union proposed counter-tariffs, President Donald Trump threatened further duties on Chinese imports.

Major gainers on the Nifty included JIO Financial, Shriram Finance, Titan Company, Cipla, and Bharat Electronics. PowerGrid was the only stock to close in the red.

SECTORAL PERFORMANCE 
All sectoral indices ended in positive territory. capital goods, consumer durables, FMCG, oil & gas, PSU banks, realty, telecom, and media rose between 2% and 4%, reflecting broad market participation.

Top Gainers	% Change
NIFTY MEDIA	4.72%
NIFTY PSU BANK	2.64%
NIFTY CONSUMER DURABLES	2.59%
NIFTY REALTY	2.47%
NIFTY OIL & GAS	2.20%

Indian government bond yields edged lower on Tuesday as investors positioned themselves ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s policy decision, due Wednesday. The benchmark 10-year gilts yield settled at 6.4747%, down slightly from 6.4836% on Monday.

Markets are largely anticipating a 25-basis-point rate cut, with hopes of a dovish policy stance or forward guidance on liquidity measures. The RBI has already infused over ₹5.2 trillion into the banking system since January through open market operations and FX swaps.

However, the rally in US bond yields, driven by reduced Fed rate cut expectations, exerted upward pressure on Indian yields intraday, briefly pushing the 10-year to 6.50%.

Tenure	Today	Previous
10-year Gilt	6.47%	6.48%
5-year gilt	6.31%	6.33%
5-year OIS	5.77%	5.74%

The Indian Rupee extended its decline today, closing at 86.26 per US dollar, down from Monday's close of 85.84. This marks the currency’s weakest level since March 20 and a sharp two-day fall of ₹1.02.

The depreciation was driven by sustained foreign fund outflows and a firm dollar index, which hovered above 103. Additionally, a weaker Chinese yuan added pressure. The People’s Bank of China fixed its reference rate at 7.2038 — the lowest since September 2023 — fuelling fears of a deeper trade war.
Crude oil hovered near four-year lows, with Brent at $64.34 and WTI at $60.83, offering some relief on India’s import bill.

Unit	Today	Previous
Dollar/Rupee	86.27	85.84
Dollar Index	102.84	102.97
1-year Dollar/rupee premium (%)	2.33%	2.40%

OUTLOOK
Looking ahead, financial markets are focused on outcome of the RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee meeting Wednesday. Economists expect a rate cut to support growth amid external trade headwinds and improved domestic liquidity conditions.
Experts expect the rupee to trade between 84.50 and 86.50 in the coming days.

Key Events & Data Due Wednesday
Economic Data:
 - US weekly crude oil inventories data

Corporate Actions:
 - BF Utilities  to consider financial results
 - Zee Media Corporation to consider fund raising
 - Pavna Industries to consider fund raising
 - Remsons Industries to consider fund raising

Policy:
 - RBI MPC meeting outcome
 - Bank of Japan Governor Ueda speaks
 - US FOMC member Barkin speaks 
 - US FOMC meeting minutes