Market extends gains; pharma shares in demand

The key equity benchmarks extended gains in mid-afternoon trade. The Nifty traded above the 22,500 level. Pharma shares extended gains for the two consecutive trading sessions.

At 14:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, surged 456.61 points, or 0.62%, to 74,186.84. The Nifty 50 index added 169.60 points, or 0.76%, to 22,506.90.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.81%, and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 1.75%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 3,035 shares rose and 898 shares fell. A total of 125 shares were unchanged.

Politics:

The BJP secured two out of three Member of Legislative Council (MLC) seats in Telangana, winning the prestigious Karimnagar-Medak-Nizamabad-Adilabad Graduates constituency. BJPs Chinnamile Anji Reddy triumphed by a margin of 5,106 votes after the second-preference count of votes. He received a total of 98,637 votes, while his immediate Congress rival V Narender Reddy got 93,531.

 

Union minister Bandi Sanjay cited the BJP's extensive campaign efforts across Northern Telangana as key to their success.

A day before, the BJP and Progressive Recognized Teachers Union (PRTU) had bagged one each of the two teachers MLC seats for which elections were held. M Komaraiah of the BJP bagged the Medak-Nizamabad-Karimnagar-Adilabad teachers MLC seat while PRTU candidate P. Sripal Reddy won the Nalgonda-Warangal-Khammam teachers constituency.

Meanwhile, celebrations erupted among BJP supporters in Karimnagar, with Central Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar and party workers gathering in a victory rally. He hailed the win as a Ramzan gift to the Congress and declared that the BJP has firmly established itself as a formidable alternative in Telangana. He said BJPs extensive campaign efforts across Northern Telangana as key to their success.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Pharma index rose 1.56% to 20,441.20. The index added 3.13% in the two consecutive trading sessions.

Gland Pharma (up 3.07%), Cipla (up 2.96%), Granules India (up 2.94%), Torrent Pharmaceuticals (up 2.7%) and Zydus Lifesciences (up 2.53%), Laurus Labs (up 2.16%), Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries (up 1.98%), Aurobindo Pharma (up 1.83%), Biocon (up 1.77%), and Dr Reddys Laboratories (up 1.58%) added.

On the other hand, JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals (down 2.68%), Ipca Laboratories (down 1.24%), and Abbott India (down 0.52%) declined.

Numbers to Track:

The yield on India's 10-year benchmark federal paper was up 1.27% to 6.803 as compared with previous close 6.827.

In the foreign exchange market, the rupee edged higher against the dollar. The partially convertible rupee was hovering at 87.0700, compared with its close of 87.0650 during the previous trading session.

MCX Gold futures for 4 April 2025 settlement shed 0.25% to Rs 85,618.

The US Dollar index (DXY), which tracks the greenback's value against a basket of currencies, was shed 0.18% to 104.13.

The United States 10-year bond yield added 0.58% to 4.325.

In the commodities market, Brent crude for May 2025 settlement shed 6 cents, or 0.09% to $69.24 a barrel.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Cellecor Gadgets rose 3.92% after the company announced that it has partnered with Zepto to expand its Quick Commerce platform.

G M Breweries jumped 3.88% after the company decided to incorporate a wholly owned subsidiary (WOS), Buildfort Infradev Private, to venture into the infrastructure development space.

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