Equity Gains On Global Cues; Rupee At 3-Week High

Highlights 
• IndusInd Bank shares rise as RBI says lender 'well-capitalised'
• HUDCO shares rise 3.5% as firm extends ₹110 billion loan to build Andhra's Amaravati
• Muthoot Finance shares jumps as higher gold prices push gold loan assets to ₹1 trillion
• HCC shares surge 4% after firm's JV with Tata Projects wins order worth ₹21.91 billion

Benchmark equity indices bounced back today, closing higher by 0.5% following a sharp rise in global equities and recovery in banking stocks.

Despite the optimism in the frontline indices, the broader market saw a more subdued performance, with the market breadth favouring declines.

 

IndusInd Bank ended the day higher as the RBI reaffirmed stability of the bank amid accounting discrepancies.

 SECTORAL PERFORMANCE 
The broader markets ended mixed, with the BSE MidCap ending 0.77% higher and the SmallCap ended flat.

On the sectoral front, auto, bank, metal, power, pharma rose 0.5-1.5% while realty and media fell 0.5% each.

Pharma stocks gained most as BofA said the impact from 10% tariff on pharma by the US will be manageable, with case for pass through by manufacturers.

Top Gainers	% Change	Top Losers	% Change
NIFTY PHARMA	1.56%	NIFTY MEDIA	-0.65%
NIFTY HEALTHCARE INDEX	1.51%	NIFTY REALTY	-0.38%
NIFTY FINANCIAL SERVICES	1.03%	NIFTY FMCG	-0.20%
NIFTY AUTO	0.91%	NIFTY OIL & GAS	-0.05%
NIFTY METAL	0.77%

Yields on 10-year government bonds ended slightly lower ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's open market purchase of bonds on Tuesday.

The RBI is scheduled to buy bonds worth ₹500 billion on Tuesday.

Investors expect government bond yields to inch down as lower expected headline retail inflation boosted hopes of an RBI rate cut in April.

Tenure	Today	Previous
10-year Gilt	6.69%	6.70%
5-year gilt	6.60%	6.61%
5-year OIS	5.95%	5.97%

The Indian rupee gained by 20 paise, and ended at a 3-week high against the US dollar, supported dollar sales by exporters and foreign banks amid softer dollar index, which hovered near a five-month low.

Exporters are selling dollars ahead of the end of financial year on March 31. Meanwhile, a sharp contraction in India's merchandise trade deficit also aided the rupee. India’s merchandise trade deficit for February stood at $14.05 billion, marking the lowest level in 42 months.

Unit	Today	Previous
Dollar/Rupee	86.80	87.00
Dollar Index	103.15	103.50
1-year Dollar/rupee premium (%)	2.16%	2.14%

OUTLOOK
Indian equity market's near-term trend is expected to remain stable with a positive bias, though global uncertainties and trade tensions could impact sentiment. 

The rupee expected to remain supported as concerns about a slowing US economy amid escalations in trade policies is weighing on the dollar, while year-end dollar sells by exporter to aid. The expected trading range for Tuesday is between 86.50 and 87.00, as investors await US FOMC meet outcome on Wednesday.

Key Events & Data Due Tuesday
Economic Data:
- Eurozone March ZEW Economic Sentiment Index
- Eurozone January Trade data
- US February Housing Starts Data
- US February Industrial Production Data

Corporate Actions:
- CG Power and Industrial Solutions board to consider dividend
- Ugro Capital board to discuss fundraising plans
- TARC board to discuss fundraising plans

Policy:
- Bank of Japan two-day policy meeting starts 
- US FOMC two-day policy meeting starts