| The domestic equity benchmarks traded near the flatline with some negative cuts in the mid- afternoon trade, tracking global risk aversion after Donald Trump's hawkish stance on Iran. Brent crude surged toward $105, raising inflation concerns. Domestic markets remained cautious ahead of the weekly expiry of BSE Sensex contracts. Being the final session of a truncated week, volatility is expected to stay elevated with global cues guiding trade. The Nifty slipped below the 22,250 mark. IT shares extended gains for second consecutive trading session. At 14:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, fell 3.64 points or 0.01% to 73,132.57. The Nifty 50 index slipped 5.40 points or 0.03% to 22,674.30. In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index declined 0.21% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index slipped 0.57%. The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 2,340 shares rose and 1,766 shares fell. A total of 181 shares were unchanged. Economy: India's manufacturing activity eased to 53.9 in March 2026, down from 56.9 in February, according to the latest Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data released on April 2. The reading marks a 45-month low, with the last comparable level seen in September 2021 (53.7), indicating a moderation in manufacturing momentum. The March print also reverses the uptrend seen earlier in 2026, when PMI rose from 55.0 in December to 55.4 in January and 56.9 in February. While the index remained in the 55'59 range during 2024'2025, with peaks above 59, the latest decline suggests softening demand conditions and rising input cost pressures. The moderation comes amid heightened geopolitical tensions and elevated crude oil prices, which have begun to weigh on business sentiment and cost structures. Buzzing Index: The Nifty IT index added 2.42% to 30,385.70. The index tanked 4.55% in the two consecutive trading session. Coforge (up 4.72%), LTIMindtree (up 4.7%), Persistent Systems (up 3.53%), HCL Technologies (up 3.23%), Mphasis (up 3.04%) Tech Mahindra (up 2.57%), Wipro (up 1.9%), Infosys (up 1.66%), Tata Consultancy Services (up 1.57%) and Oracle Financial Services Software (up 1.48%) added. Numbers to Track: The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper added 2.24% to 7.117 compared with previous session close of 6.961. In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 92.8325 compared with its close of 94.7000 during the previous trading session. MCX Gold futures for 5 June 2026 settlement fell 3.52% to Rs 148,300. The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was up 0.57% to 100.14. The United States 10-year bond yield added 1.32% to 4.377. In the commodities market, Brent crude for June 2026 settlement zoomed $7.29 or 7.21% to $108.45 a barrel. Stocks in Spotlight: Sai Silks (Kalamandir) slipped 4.40%. The company achieved a turnover of Rs 419 crore in Q4 FY26, registering a growth of 5.01% compared with Rs 399 crore in Q4 FY25. Latent View Analytics surged 18.01% after the company said that its subsidiary LatentView Analytics Corporation has executed an agreement for making a strategic investment of $3 million in Healtheon AI INC. |