The BSE Sensex was trading 230 points, or 0.27%, higher at 83,926, while the Nifty50 rose 58 points, or 0.23%, to 25,598 around 9:18 am.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent indicated that both countries are close to finalising a deal that could help India avoid steep tariff hikes. The comments have boosted hopes of a breakthrough ahead of Trump’s July 9 tariff deadline.
Among individual stocks, IndusInd Bank fell 3% in early trade after Goldman Sachs downgraded the stock to ‘Sell’ from ‘Neutral’.
Shares of Asian Paints also slipped nearly 2% after the Competition Commission of India (CCI) ordered an investigation into the company following a complaint by Aditya Birla Group’s Grasim Industries, alleging abuse of dominant market position.
Experts View“After breaking the 24500-25000 range Nifty has moved to the new range of 25200-25800. Positive news about a possible trade deal between India and US can help break the upper limit of the range but it would be difficult to sustain the Nifty at higher levels for long. There are no indications yet of a strong rebound in earnings. GST collections data for June indicates sluggish growth. Auto sales numbers for June also indicates subdued sales. In brief, there is no room for the market to sustain the upward momentum given the high valuations,” said Dr. VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments.Hardik Matalia, Derivative Analyst at Choice Broking, said, “After a positive opening, Nifty can find support at 25,500 followed by 25,400 and 25,300. On the higher side, 25,600 can be an immediate resistance, followed by 25,700 and 25,800.”
Global Markets
Asian stocks slipped on Wednesday and the dollar languished near 3-1/2-year lows as investors weighed the prospect of U.S. interest rate cuts and the scramble for trade deals ahead of President Donald Trump’s July 9 deadline for tariffs.
Trump said he was not considering extending the July 9 deadline for countries to negotiate trade deals with the United States, and cast doubts again that an agreement could be reached with Japan, although he expects a deal with India.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan eased 0.23% in early trading, inching away from the November 2021 top it touched last week. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.78%, dragged by tech stocks.
Tech-heavy Taiwan stocks and South Korea’s Kospi Index also fell after U.S. tech firms were hit hard following a strong rally in June.
FII/DII Tracker
The Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extended their selling on July 1 as they sold equities worth Rs 1,970 crore, while Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) continued their buying as they bought equities worth Rs 771 crore on the same day.
Crude Oil
Oil futures were little changed on Wednesday as markets weighed expectations from more supply from major producers next month, a softer U.S. dollar and a mixed bag of economic and market indicators from the U.S., the world’s largest oil consumer.
Brent crude was up 2 cents at $67.13 a barrel at 0345 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 1 cent to $65.44 a barrel.
Rupee vs Dollar
The Indian rupee fell 3 paise to 85.62 against the US dollar in early trade. The dollar index, which tracks the movement of the greenback against a basket of six major world currencies, declined 0.13% to 96.69 level.
(With inputs from agencies)