NIFTY50 and SENSEX trade marginally positive; Midcap and Smallcap jump over 1%

Volatility continued over Dalal Street in the mid-market session amid ongoing concerns over U.S. tariffs. However, SENSEX and NIFTY managed to keep their heads above water, supported by buying at Industrials and Energy counters.

Some relief came after Anna Bjerde, managing director of operations at the World Bank said that India could emerge as a developed country by 2047, provided it sustains high economic growth. Bjerde said she sees an economically uncertain world for some more time.

Despite a flat and volatile session on the benchmark indices, the broader market breadth remained in favour of advances as 1,864 stocks traded in green and 895 in declines. Similarly, 195 stocks were locked in the upper circuit against 42 in the lower circuit.

Asian markets were trading mixed, as China's export growth eased more than expected at the start of the year and imports logged an unexpected sharp decline amid mounting trade tensions. Exports grew at a slower pace of 2.3%t annually in the January to February period, following a 10.7%rise in December. Exports were expected to climb 5.0%.

The SENSEX traded at 74406.47, up by 66.38 points or 0.09% after trading in a range of 74038.03 and 74586.43. There were 14 stocks advancing against 16 stocks declining on the index.

The broader indices were trading in green; the BSE Mid cap index surged by 0.42%, while the Small cap index was up by 1.37%.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were Industrials up by 1.48%, Energy up by 1.24%, Capital Goods up by 1.16%, Telecom up by 0.83% and Basic Materials up by 0.82%, while IT down by 0.88%, TECK down by 0.57%, Utilities down by 0.33%, Consumer Durables down by 0.21% and FMCG down by 0.10% were the top losing indices on BSE.

The NIFTY50 traded at 22548.80, up by 4.10 points or 0.02% after trading in a range of 22464.75 and 22633.80. There were 24 stocks advancing against 26 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Reliance Industries up by 3.32%, Bajaj Auto up by 1.84%, Bharat Electronics up by 1.58%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 1.17% and Coal India up by 1.08%. On the flip side, IndusInd Bank down by 2.85%, Infosys down by 2.10%, NTPC down by 1.83%, Shriram Finance down by 1.61% and HCL Tech. down by 1.27% were the top losers.

Asian markets were trading mixed; Shanghai Composite weakened 3.3 points or 0.1% to 3,377.80, KOSPI dropped 11.49 points or 0.45% to 2,564.67, Nikkei 225 slipped 799.27 points or 2.12% to 36,905.66 and Taiwan Weighted lost 139.36 points or 0.62% to 22,576.07, while Hang Seng advanced 18.63 points or 0.08% to 24,388.34, Jakarta Composite gained 41 points or 0.62% to 6,658.85 and Straits Times rose 1.26 points or 0.03% to 3,918.3.