Welcome to Aftermarket Report, a newsletter where we do a quick daily wrap-up of what happened in the markets, both in India and globally.
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Market Overview
Nifty opened with a 53-point gap down at 23,433.95, tracking weak global cues. However, it quickly recovered, filling the gap and moving higher. After some back-and-forth action, Nifty crossed the 23,600 mark within the first hour of trade. It went on to hit the day’s high at 23,646.45 before cooling off and consolidating in a narrow 50-point range between 23,570 and 23,620 for the rest of the session. The index eventually closed at 23,591.95, up 0.44%.
After two days of profit booking, Nifty staged a strong rebound today. Meanwhile, global markets remain cautious ahead of April 2nd, when the US President is expected to announce reciprocal tariffs targeting several major economies.
Broader Market Performance:
Although the headline indices performed well today, the broader market had a mixed session and underperformed the benchmarks. On the NSE, a total of 2,978 stocks were traded. Of these, 1,382 advanced (up from 622 in the previous session), 1,537 declined (down from 2,303), and 59 remained unchanged.
Sectoral Performance:
The top-gaining sector for the day was Nifty PSU Bank, which rallied 2.50%, followed by Nifty Media and Nifty Energy, which rose 1.52% and 1.44%, respectively. On the flip side, Nifty Auto was the biggest loser, slipping 1.04%, while Nifty Pharma also ended in the red, down 0.40%.
Out of the 12 sectoral indices listed, 10 sectors closed in the green, while 2 ended in the red, indicating broad-based buying with a few exceptions.
Note: The above numbers for Commodity futures were taken around 5 pm. NSE has not released today’s FII-DII data yet. Here’s the trend from the last 5 days:
Change in OI for the day
The following is the change in OI for Nifty contracts expiring on 3rd April:
- The maximum Call Open Interest (OI) is observed at 24,000, followed by 23,800, indicating strong resistance at 23,800 levels, followed by 24,000.
- The maximum Put Open Interest (OI) is at 23,500, followed by 23,600, suggesting strong support at 23,500, with additional support at 23,300.
Note: OI is subject to multiple interpretations, but generally, an increase in the call OI indicates resistance in a falling market, and an increase in the put OI indicates support in a rising market.
Source: Sensibull
Tijori is an investment research platform, and they have constructed niche indices for various themes and sub-sectors. They help you understand the market performance of narrow slices of the market. You can also track the Promoter buying and other interesting stuff like Capex activity by the companies in the Tijori App’s idea dashboard.
What’s happening in India
Bharti Airtel has prepaid an additional ₹5,985 crore in spectrum dues, bringing its total prepayment for FY25 to ₹25,981 crore. This reduces its debt and lowers the cost of debt on remaining liabilities to 7.22%. Dive deeper
Wipro secured a £500 million, 10-year strategic deal with UK’s Phoenix Group to provide life and pension business administration for ReAssure. This partnership aims to support Phoenix’s operational transformation, with Wipro offering end-to-end services through its subsidiary, WFOSL. Dive deeper
Reliance Industries halted additional purchases of Venezuelan crude following President Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on nations importing Venezuelan oil. The company is expected to receive one cargo of Merey crude but has paused further purchases due to heightened scrutiny. Dive deeper
Adani Group has expressed interest in acquiring Jaiprakash Associates Ltd. (JAL), which is undergoing the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP). JAL, involved in sectors like cement, power, and construction, has outstanding loans of ₹55,493 crore, with its resolution plan under process. Dive deeper
India plans to scrap the 6% ‘Google Tax’ on digital advertisements, easing costs for US tech giants like Google, Meta, and Amazon. This decision, part of 35 amendments to the Finance Bill 2025, is aimed at alleviating trade tensions with the US under President Donald Trump, with the change expected to take effect by April 1, 2025. Dive deeper
The government has approved the procurement of 37.39 lakh tonnes of gram and lentils, and 28.28 lakh tonnes of mustard for the 2025 rabi season, to be carried out through Nafed and NCCF. Major producing states include Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat. Dive deeper
Bharti Airtel has brought the 2Africa Pearls submarine cable system to India, providing over 100 Tbps of international capacity, linking the country’s network with Africa, Europe, and the Middle East. The cable system is part of the world’s longest subsea network, connecting Asia, Africa, and Europe. Dive deeper
Marico’s subsidiary, Marico South East Asia Corp., has completed the intra-group merger of Beauty X Joint Stock Company with MSEA after receiving regulatory approval in Vietnam. Dive deeper
Waaree Renewable Technologies has secured a ₹232.3 crore contract for a 170 MW solar power plant, which will be implemented on a turnkey basis. The project will significantly contribute to carbon offset, reducing an estimated 225,000 metric tonnes of CO2 annually. Dive deeper
The Ministry of Defence signed a ₹6,900 crore deal with Bharat Forge and Tata Advanced Systems to acquire advanced towed artillery gun systems and high mobility vehicles. This is the first major private-sector procurement of towed guns by the Indian Army, aimed at modernizing artillery capabilities and enhancing operational readiness. Dive deeper
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. has approved an investment of ₹7,410 crore for setting up a third plant at Kharkhoda, Haryana, with a capacity of up to 2.5 lakh vehicles per year. The expansion will bring the total capacity at Kharkhoda to 7.5 lakh units per year by 2029. Dive deeper
Green Portfolio launched a Rs 300 crore Alternative Investment Fund (AIF), with over 50% of commitments secured from investors. The fund will allocate 70-80% to listed equities, focusing on small, mid, and micro-cap stocks, and 20-30% to pre-IPO and private market opportunities. Dive deeper
JSW Infrastructure acquired the slurry pipeline business from JSW Utkal Steel for Rs 1,617 crore, facilitating the transportation of iron ore in Odisha. The acquisition is supported by a 20-year take-or-pay agreement with JSW Steel. Dive deeper
Switch Mobility, a subsidiary of Ashok Leyland, has initiated the process to close its UK manufacturing unit in Sherburn due to economic uncertainties in the bus manufacturing sector. However, it will continue to fulfill existing orders and provide support from other UK facilities. The closure timeline is uncertain, pending internal and external processes. Dive deeper
Sunteck Realty has approved a $10-20 million investment in its subsidiary, Sunteck Lifestyle International Private Limited (SLIPL), to fund the Dubai Project. The investment will be made in equity or convertible securities and aims to support international ventures despite recent stock market underperformance. Dive deeper
What’s happening globally
The dollar index dropped to 104.3 on Thursday as investors assessed the impact of Trump’s new auto tariffs and mixed economic data. The tariffs, set to take effect on April 2, raised concerns about slower US growth and renewed inflation pressures. Dive deeper
Gold approached historic highs, rising toward $3,040 per ounce, as concerns over US auto tariffs and trade tensions grew. The Fed maintained its cautious outlook, signaling no immediate rate cuts. Investors are awaiting Friday’s PCE report for further inflation insights. Dive deeper
Brent crude oil eased toward $73 per barrel as US auto tariffs raised concerns over oil demand. However, supply risks from Iran and Venezuela, along with strong US demand signals, kept oil prices supported. US crude stockpiles fell by 3.34 million barrels last week, the sharpest drop since December. Dive deeper
The US economy grew at an annualized rate of 2.4% in Q4 2024, slightly above prior estimates, driven by stronger government spending and a more substantial decline in imports. Personal consumption remained the key growth driver, rising 4%, while private inventories subtracted 0.84 percentage points from growth. Dive deeper
The US trade deficit in goods narrowed to $147.91 billion in February 2025, easing from a revised record of $155.6 billion in January. Imports surged 22.5%, while exports rose 2.5%, driven by higher sales of capital and consumer goods. Dive deeper
The S&P 500 dropped 0.4%, the Nasdaq fell 0.7%, and the Dow Jones declined by 180 points, as traders reacted to new US tariff announcements and economic data. The Trump administration’s 25% tariff on non-US cars raised concerns over inflation and economic impact, while GDP growth for Q4 was revised higher to 2.4%. Dive deeper
Major European bourses dropped on Thursday, with the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 both down nearly 1%, led by the auto sector. The US tariff announcement on non-US-made cars and threats of further measures hurt auto stocks, with Porsche, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW seeing significant losses. Dive deeper
Bank lending to households in the Eurozone rose by 1.5% year-on-year to €6.956 trillion in February 2025, marking the largest annual increase since June 2023. Lending to companies grew by 2.2%, the highest since July 2023, and overall private sector credit growth increased to 2.5%. Dive deeper
The Norges Bank held its key policy rate steady at 4.5% in March 2025, citing rising inflation and cautioning against premature rate cuts. Norway’s inflation accelerated to 3.6% in February, the highest since April 2024. Dive deeper
Management chatter
In this section, we pick out interesting comments made by the management of major companies and policymakers of the Indian and Global Economy.
Ram Mohan Naidu, Civil Aviation Minister, on Aircraft Leasing and Market Reforms
“Gift City is trying to create such an ecosystem. It has already leased out 200 planes.”
“I agree with the idea that we need more competition. It is simple economics, more competition, more flights and definitely tariffs will come down.”
“We are bringing a law to ratify Capetown Convention, which will reduce the leasing costs by 8-10%. The reduction in leasing costs will trickle down to passengers and air fares.” Dive deeper
BVR Subrahmanyam, CEO, NITI Aayog on MSME Sector Challenges
“Sometimes when I think of the Indian economy, I worry. We have a large number of large companies. The number of medium companies is smaller than the number of large companies. Then, where is the growth going to come from?”
“It’s an institutional, structural problem.”
“If you don’t have enough medium companies, how will you get the large companies? Our country has a problem in converting micro to small, small to medium.” - Link
Sanjay Malhotra, Governor, Reserve Bank of India on Growth and Monetary Policy
“There is a need to preserve the high growth momentum, while maintaining price stability, necessitating monetary policy to use various policy instruments to maintain the inflation-growth balance.”- Link
Calendars
In the coming days, we have the following significant events and corporate actions:
That’s it from us. Do let us know your feedback in the comments and share it with your friends to spread the word.