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Indian equity benchmarks rose to the day's highs in intraday trade. The Nifty 50 gained as much as 258.30 points, or 1.1%, to 23,670.90, while the Sensex rose as much as 821 points, or 1.1%, to 75,430.47.
Meanwhile, Oil prices steadied on Thursday as investors awaited a meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. Concerns over the Iran war continued to support crude prices. Brent crude traded below $106 a barrel after falling 2% in the previous session, while West Texas Intermediate was near $101.
U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S.-China relationship would be “better than ever” and that trade would be reciprocal. He said the U.S. looked forward to doing business with China. Chinese President Xi Jinping said common interests between the two countries outweighed differences and called for steering China-U.S. relations in the right direction. The talks are also expected to cover Taiwan, the Iran war and maritime security, including the Strait of Hormuz. Business leaders including Elon Musk, Tim Cook and Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg will join Trump, linking the talks to corporate supply chains.
Elsewhere, Asian markets traded mostly higher, led by Hong Kong's Hang Seng index, which rose 1.70%. South Korea's Kospi gained 1.38%, while Japan's Nikkei 225 advanced 0.63%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.04% lower.
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Balaji Amines’ net profit rose 57.6% to Rs 63.2 crore, while ADF Foods’ profit increased 57.6% to Rs 25.9 crore. CARE Ratings posted a 24% rise in net profit to Rs 52.8 crore.
DLF’s net profit fell 1.1% to Rs 1,269 crore, while revenue declined 42% to Rs 1,814 crore. Man Infraconstruction’s profit fell 44.3% to Rs 42.8 crore, and Redington’s profit declined 41.3% to Rs 391 crore.
Macquarie maintained an Outperform rating on HPCL with a target price of Rs 510, citing a stable quarter led by a stronger-than-expected refining margin. It estimated that India’s oil marketing companies are losing Rs 18 per litre on petrol and Rs 35 per litre on diesel sales.
Citi maintained a Buy rating but cut its target price to Rs 485 from Rs 595. It said Q4 was ahead of expectations, helped by refining and marketing inventory gains, while near-term pressure remains a key factor.
Oil India’s consolidated net profit rose 75.7% sequentially to Rs 2,100 crore in Q4, while revenue increased 9.9% to Rs 10,013 crore.
EBITDA rose 30.7% to Rs 3,281 crore, and margin expanded 530 basis points to 32.8%. The company’s arm formed a joint venture with Hindustan Waste Treatment to develop compressed biogas projects.
Goldman Sachs maintained a Buy rating on TVS Motor and raised its target price to Rs 4,150 from Rs 4,100. Morgan Stanley kept an Overweight rating with a target price of Rs 4,327, while Jefferies maintained Buy with a target of Rs 4,500.
Kotak maintained an Add rating but cut its target price to Rs 3,925 from Rs 4,000. Brokerages cited domestic two-wheeler demand, exports, capacity expansion and premium products, while also flagging commodity cost pressure as a margin risk.
Citi said weak monsoons can affect agriculture and reduce sales of consumer staples and tractors, while raising demand for air conditioners and electricity. It said the impact on two-wheeler sales and construction is mixed.
The brokerage said rural demand shows cyclical and structural resilience to deficient monsoons. Citi remains underweight on staples and paints, and neutral on autos.
Trade issues on the agenda include the U.S.-China tariff truce, technology restrictions, rare earth supplies and possible increases in U.S. purchases by China.
The talks are also expected to cover Taiwan, the Iran war and maritime security, including the Strait of Hormuz. Business leaders including Elon Musk, Tim Cook and Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg will join Trump, linking the talks to corporate supply chains.
Sensex expiry, India’s WPI data, the Trump-Xi meeting in China and the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting will be in focus during the session.
Investors will also track U.S. initial jobless claims and Q4 earnings from JSW Steel, Tata Motors PV, United Spirits, HAL and Voltas. Board meetings on fundraising, a CMS Info Systems buyback and a TD Power Systems stock split will also be watched.
Bharti Airtel’s board approved issuing up to 14.6 crore shares worth Rs 28,220 crore to Indian Continent Investment as part of a stock swap for a 16.31% stake in Airtel Africa. The board also reappointed Sunil Bharti Mittal as Chairman for five years from Oct. 1.
Zydus Lifesciences will consider a share buyback on May 19, while Zydus Worldwide will acquire Assertio Holdings for $166.4 million. Lupin received U.S. FDA approval for Famotidine Injection vials.
IDBI Bank will consider raising up to Rs 10,000 crore through long-term bonds. Easy Trip Planners approved a Rs 500 crore rights issue, while Jana Small Finance Bank will consider fundraising options on May 18.
Sasken Technologies has been shortlisted under the short-term ASM framework. Allied Blenders and Distillers, Apollo Micro Systems and Man Industries will be excluded from the ASM framework.
Read more here.
Asian markets traded mostly higher, led by Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index, which rose 1.70%. South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.38%, while Japan’s Nikkei 225 advanced 0.63%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.04% lower.
Indian equity benchmarks closed slightly higher on Wednesday after moving between gains and losses during the session. The Nifty 50 rose 33.05 points, or 0.14%, to 23,412.60, while the Sensex gained 49.74 points, or 0.07%, to 74,608.98.
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