The prediction for the opening of Indian stocks on Tuesday hints towards a slight rise. This positive inclination stems from the cues taken from other buoyant Asian markets. Investors are also anticipating the forthcoming Reserve Bank of India (RBI) policy meeting and the initiation of the fourth-quarter earnings season.
Indian markets started the 2025 financial year on a strong note, thanks to the rise in benchmark indexes like Sensex and Nifty by 0.5% and 0.6% respectively. This surge was primarily driven by metal stocks.
Keeping with the good news, an official announcement revealed a year-on-year jump of 11.5% in India's Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection for March 2024, amounting to 1.78 lakh crore Rupees.
Asian stock markets mirrored similar growth patterns on their reopening after the holiday break.
On the international market front, the U.S dollar maintained a stable position near a record high over the past four and a half months against major peers. Meanwhile, gold remained below $2250 per ounce and oil continued to flirt with a five-month high. The latter was mainly due to the increased geopolitical risks in the Middle East and a constrained supply from Mexico.
Escalating geopolitical tension resulted in the destruction of Iran's consulate in Syria, allegedly by an Israeli airstrike. This incident resulted in the death of two Iranian generals and five officers.
On the flip side, U.S. stocks dropped early gains, ending on mixed terms. The cause of this unpredictability was the strong manufacturing data and signs of rising component prices found in the ISM report. These signs ignited worries of persistent inflation which dampened hopes for interest rate cuts in June.
Investors also reacted to the release of the PCE inflation data on Friday. The comments by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, stating that the U.S. central bank sees no immediate need for interest rate cuts, also influenced investor behavior.
Consequently, the Dow reduced by 0.6% and the S&P 500 dropped 0.2%. However, Nasdaq Composite, a tech-focus market, edged up by 0.1%.
On Monday, major European markets remained closed in observance of the Easter holiday.
