Gift Nifty indicates positive opening for Sensex, Nifty; RIL, M&M, Adani Green, UltraTech shares in focus

The Indian stock market is set to start the holiday-shortened week on a positive note, tracking stability in global equities amid ongoing discussions between the United States and its trade partners on new trade agreements. Adding to it, renewed foreign institutional investor (FII) fund inflows in domestic market will also boost sentiments. The positive trends in GIFT Nifty futures also indicated a gap-up opening for the equity benchmarks BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50. At 7:50 AM, the GIFT Nifty index was up 172.5 points, or 0.7%, at 24,257.

The market participants will keep a close eye on new developments in the Pahalgam terror attack case as escalating geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan may spark investor caution. The Street will see stock specific reaction as Reliance Industries (RIL), Indraprastha Gas , IDFC First Bank , India Cements , L&T Finance , Poonawalla Fincorp , Tata Technologies , Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India, DCB Bank , and many others released their Q4 results post market hours last Friday.

Sensex, Nifty extended weekly gains

Last week, domestic markets extended their uptrend, registering nearly a 1% gain despite some profit booking at higher levels. After an initial surge, the benchmarks traded in a narrow range through the middle of the week, before witnessing profit-taking in the final session. Ultimately, the Nifty and Sensex ended at 24,039 and 79,213, respectively.

Global market stability, driven by ongoing discussions between the U.S. and its trade partners on tariff arrangements, helped ease concerns about the impact of tariffs on global commerce. This, coupled with renewed foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows, bolstered market sentiment, said Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking.

“In the current scenario, it is advisable to maintain a positive yet cautious approach, with a preference for hedged positions in the index. Stock-specific opportunities are likely to remain abundant on both the long and short sides. Hence, the focus should be on identifying stocks with favorable risk-reward setups,” he said.

Key events to watch

The upcoming holiday-shortened week also marks the beginning of a new month, making monthly auto sales data a key area of focus for market participants. On the macroeconomic front, investors will closely track the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data and the HSBC Manufacturing PMI Final data. Meanwhile, geopolitical developments between India and Pakistan will remain on the radar.

On the corporate earnings front, several prominent companies—including BPCL, IOC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, SBI, Bajaj Finance, TVS Motor, and UltraTech Cement—are set to release their quarterly results. Globally, updates related to tariffs and trade will also be watched closely.

Wall Street ends week on strong note

Extending gaining streak for the fourth straight session, U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday amid sustained rally in tech heavyweights such as Google parent Alphabet, Nvidia, Meta Platforms, and Tesla. The tech stocks, which witnessed sharp correction in recent past, regained momentum as investors assessed changing global trade developments. The progress of trade talks between the U.S. and China as well as potential economic deals and peace agreement between Washington, D.C. and Moscow boosted sentiments. The S&P 500 rose 0.74% on Friday, the Nasdaq Composite surged 1.26%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended marginally higher by 0.05%.

Asian stocks edge higher

In the Asia-Pacific region, equity market traded mixed on Monday, with Japanese and Australian stocks rising in early deals, while Hong Kong and Chinese market edged lower as investors awaited signs of further stimulus from China. The weakness in U.S. equity-index futures also dented sentiment, with the Dow Jones futures dropping as much as 0.5% in early trading today.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 0.65%, Taiwan Weighted index rallied 0.9%, and Australia’s ASX 200 index ended 0.75% higher. Among others, Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite and South Korea’s Kospi rose in the range of 0.3-0.6%. On the other hand, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index, China’s Shanghai Composite and Singapore’s Straits Times fell up to 0.6%.

Stocks to watch

Q4 results:  Adani Green Energy , Adani Total Gas , UltraTech Cement , TVS Motor Company, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, CSB Bank, Hexaware, IDBI Bank, IRFC, Oberoi Realty, PNB Housing Finance, Castrol India, Central Bank of India, Fino Payments Bank, Firstsource Solutions, Go Digit General Insurance, Greenply Industries, IIFL Capital Services, Indegene, KFin Technologies, KPIT Technologies, Nippon Life India Asset Management, UCO Bank, and many others are set to release their quarterly numbers today. 

Mahindra & Mahindra : The auto major has entered into an agreement to acquire a 58.96% stake in SML Isuzu (SML) for ₹555 crore.

GAIL India : The oil company has signed a pact with Container Corporation of India (CONCOR) to explore the adoption of liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an alternative fuel in the logistics sector.

Vodafone Idea : Goldman Sachs (Singapore) Pte - ODI has acquired a 0.55% stake in the telecom operator at an average price of ₹7.65 per share, valued at around ₹458 crore.

NRB Bearings : The manufacturer of ball and roller bearings will invest around ₹200 crore over the next two years to expand and upgrade its manufacturing capabilities and R&D.

RailTel Corporation of India : The telecom infrastructure provider has received a work order worth ₹90.08 crore from the Institute of Road Transport.

Ather Energy IPO: The public issue of EV maker is set to end the primary market dry spell with its IPO going to open today. This is first mainboard issue after nearly two months, as Quality Power was the last company to list its shares on the domestic bourses – BSE and NSE - on February 24, 2025.

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