Indices close higher amidst legal ruling on Trump's tariffs

Synopsis

Indian benchmark indices closed positively on Thursday, though gains lagged behind other Asian markets. Nifty rose 0.33% to 24,833.6, and Sensex increased 0.39% to 81,633.02, despite intraday dips. Underperformance was attributed to prior rallies and call writing at the 25,000 level, creating resistance. FPIs and domestic institutions were net buyers.

Mumbai: Indian benchmark indices ended on a positive note on Thursday, but gains were muted compared with other Asian markets, which rose after a US federal court ruled that US President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs were illegal and blocked his plan to impose broad import duties under emergency powers.

NSE's Nifty gained 81.15 points, or 0.33%, to close at 24,833.6, while BSE's Sensex rose 320.7 points, or 0.39%, to end at 81,633.02. Both indices had fallen about 0.3% intraday.

Elsewhere in Asia, Japan rose 1.9%, China gained 0.7%, Hong Kong advanced 1.35%, South Korea was up 1.9%, and Taiwan ended flat.

Agencies

"Indian markets underperformed relative to other Asian indices, primarily due to a strong rally earlier in the May series and significant call writing at the 25,000 level ahead of the monthly expiry, which created a key resistance zone," said Rajesh Palviya, head of technical and derivatives research at Axis Securities.

Palviya expects the Nifty to cross 25,000-25,200 range next week.

US indices initially rose after the court order but ended lower after the Trump administration filed an immediate notice of appeal. The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5-0.6% at Wednesday's close.

"India remained relatively muted compared with other Asian peers, having already priced in optimism around potential manufacturing shifts from China and South Asia to India, along with expectations of an India-US trade deal ahead of the 90-day cut-off," said Sham Chandak, head of institutional equities at Elios Financial Services.

"A Nifty breakout above 25,000-25,200 levels would likely require a significant positive catalyst," he said. FPIs were net buyers of ₹884 crore, while domestic institutions bought shares worth ₹4286.5 crore.

The Nifty Midcap 150 gained 0.6%, and the Nifty Smallcap 250 rose 0.4% on Thursday. Out of the total 4,111 stocks traded on BSE, 1933 advanced and 2056 declined.

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