Snapping three-day losses, Indian stock indices back in green; Sensex up 410 points

New Delhi [India], May 21 (ANI): After three straight session losses, Indian stock indices soared on Wednesday, possibly due to buying at relatively lower levels.
The indices had slumped in the past three sessions, possibly due to profit booking.
Going ahead, investors now await further updates on India-US trade deal negotiations. US, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal earlier this week had "good discussions" with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about expediting the first tranche of the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement.
On Wednesday, Sensex closed at 81,596.63 points, up 410.20 points or 0.51 per cent, while Nifty closed at 24,813.45 points, up 129.55 points or 0.52 per cent. Barring Nifty consumer durables, all sectoral indices were in the green. Nifty Pharma and Nifty Realty were the top movers.
Nifty India Defence jumped 3.4 per cent. Gold, a key indicator of the financial sector, was trading at USD 3,318 per ounce, up USD 30 or 0.9 per cent.
Sensex is now over 4,000 points below its all-time high of 85,978 points.
Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Investments Limited said markets exhibited a broadly positive undertone today. However, overall sentiment remained confined within a narrow range, indicating risk of "sell on rallies" strategy in the near future amid escalating uncertainty around India - US trade negotiations. There is a growing perception that India may not derive the anticipated benefits initially projected during the peak of the tariff war, which has since de-escalated," Nair said.
"FIIs turned net sellers due to the concerns over the recent US credit rating downgrade, tax cut plans in the US that could significantly widen the fiscal deficit, and its effect on the upcoming Fed policy next month. This change in stance hints at an increased probability of emerging risk-averse sentiment in the near term," Nair added.
For Indian stock markets, key monitorables going ahead are Q4 GDP numbers and global cues. The official GDP data for Q4 2024-25 is scheduled to be released on May 30 by the National Statistics Office, along with the annual GDP for 2024-25.
During the April-June, July-September, and October-December 2024 quarters, the country's economy, in real terms, observed a growth rate of 6.7 per cent, 5.6 per cent, and 6.2 per cent, respectively. As per the second advance estimates of NSO, the country's economy is projected to grow at 6.5 per cent in 2024-25. (ANI)