Barring the Nifty consumer durables index, all the other sectoral indices on the NSE traded in green.
At 13:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex gained 321.34 points or 0.40% to 81,507.82. The Nifty 50 index rose 99.05 points or 0.40% to 24,782.80.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rallied 0.65% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.16%.
The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,012 shares rose and 1,835 shares fell. A total of 160 shares were unchanged.
The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 1.58% to 17.66.
Gainers & Losers:
Bharat Electronics (up 4.07%), Cipla (up 2.45%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 1.79%), Tata Steel (up 1.61%) and HDFC Life Insurance Company (up 1.56%) were the major Nifty50 gainers.
IndusInd Bank (down 2%), JSW Steel (down 0.89%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (down 0.73%), Coal India (down 0.64%) and Shriram Finance (down 0.35%) were the major Nifty50 Losers.
Economy:
India's infrastructure output, which tracks activity across eight sectors and makes up 40% of the country's industrial production, grew at 0.5% annually in April as against 4.6% in March, data from Ministry of Commerce & Industry showed on Tuesday. The Index of eight Core Industries is the measure of combined and individual performance of production of eight core industries: Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizers, Steel, Cement and Electricity.
India's retail inflation for farm as well as rural workers eased marginally to 3.48% and 3.53%, respectively, in April this year compared to the pace of price hikes for the two categories at 3.73% and 3.86% recorded in March. The All-India Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPI-AL) and Rural Labourers (CPI-RL) increased by 1 point each in April 2025 to stand at 1307 and 1320 points, respectively. The CPI-AL and CPI-RL were 1306 points and 1319 points, respectively, in March.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Whirlpool of India declined 1.54%. The company's consolidated net profit soared 53.62% to Rs 119.20 crore on 15.61% rise in revenue from operations to Rs 2,004.67 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.
NHPC added 1.50% after the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 919.63 crore in Q4 FY25, up 51.99% as against Rs 605.02 crore in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations jumped 24.37% year on year (YoY) to Rs 2,346.97 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2025.
EIH slipped 1.96%. The company reported consolidated net profit of Rs 261.62 crore in Q4 FY25, up 5.66% as against Rs 247.59 crore in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations rallied 11.61% year on year to Rs 827.45 crore in the fourth quarter of FY25.
Laxmi Organic Industries dropped 5.77% after the company's consolidated net profit fell 50.89% to Rs 21.76 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 44.31 crore reported in Q4 FY24. Revenue from operations stood at Rs 709.69 crore in Q4 FY25, registering a de-growth of 10.39% from Rs 792.06 crore recorded in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
Patel Engineering (PEL) shed 0.95%. The company said that it has been awarded a contract for undertaking the construction of hydropower project valued at Rs 711.29 crore by North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO).
Global Markets:
The US Dow Jones index futures were currently down by 179 points, signaling a weak opening for US stocks today.
Most European shares advanced on Wednesday. The U.K.'s annual inflation data for April came in at 3.5%. The latest data release comes against a recent trend of cooling inflation, with the rate of price rises slowing to 2.8% in February and 2.6% in March.
Most Asian shares traded higher. The Bank of Indonesia's policy decision is expected later in the day. The central bank had cut interest rates in September 2024 and again in January 2025 but has maintained rates at 5.75% since then.
In Japan, trade data for April showed a surprise deficit, as exports were impacted by stronger yen levels and increased U.S. trade tariffs. The country posted a trade deficit of 115.8 billion yen ($800 million), compared to a 559.4 billion yen surplus in March. Exports rose 2% year-on-year, a slowdown from 4% in the previous month. Imports declined 2.2% year-on-year, compared to expectations for a 4.5% drop, and contrasted with a 1.8% increase in the prior month.
In the United States, the three major indices closed lower on Tuesday. The S&P 500 declined 0.39%, the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.38%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.27%, as investor sentiment weakened. The technology sector fell 0.5%, with declines in major companies including Nvidia (-0.9%), AMD, Meta Platforms, Apple, and Microsoft.
Geopolitical tensions weighed on markets following reports that Israel may be planning an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. Oil prices rose on concerns over potential conflict in the Middle East.
Additionally, comments from several Federal Reserve officials signaled continued caution regarding economic and trade-related uncertainties. Policymakers indicated that elevated tariffs could contribute to inflation and reiterated a limited scope for near-term interest rate cuts.
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