Indian equity markets added some gains and were trading around half a percent higher in late afternoon session as market sentiments remained positive amid hopes that peace could break out between the US and Iran, leading to the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Some support also came as the Indian rupee strengthened by 19 paise to trade at 92.95 against the US dollar after reports indicated that the central bank has asked PSU oil refiners to reduce spot dollar purchases and use credit line for foreign exchange. Besides, foreign capital inflows have kept trading sentiments upbeat. The foreign institution investors were net buyer on Thursday’s session, with net buying of securities worth Rs 382.36 crore. Meanwhile, S&P Global Ratings has stated that India is likely to grow at 6.3% if oil prices average $130 per barrel in the current fiscal year (FY27). Citing the country’s long-term political commitment to fiscal consolidation, it noted that the fiscal strain caused by higher energy prices is unlikely to affect India’s sovereign credit rating.

On the global front, Asian equity markets were trading mostly in red ahead of potential weekend negotiations between the US and Iran. European equity markets were trading higher tracking positive cues from Wall Street overnight.

The BSE Sensex is currently trading at 78353.69, up by 365.01 points or 0.47% after trading in a range of 77726.23 and 78415.82. There were 23 stocks advancing against 7 stocks declining on the index.

The top gaining sectoral indices on the BSE were FMCG up by 2.52%, Capital Goods up by 1.86%, Power up by 1.65%, Energy up by 1.40% and Utilities up by 1.23%, while TECK down by 0.33% and IT down by 0.30% were the only losing indices on BSE.

The top gainers on the Sensex were Hindustan Unilever up by 4.50%, Power Grid Corporation up by 1.84%, Adani Ports & SEZ up by 1.58%, Reliance Industries up by 1.25% and ITC up by 1.24%. On the flip side, HCL Technologies down by 1.09%, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries down by 1.02%, Infosys down by 0.63%, Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.62% and Larsen & Toubro down by 0.47% were the top losers.

Meanwhile, India and South Korea are likely to advance discussions on trade and defence ties during the three-day visit of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung from April 19, 2026, underscoring their shared commitment to stronger bilateral cooperation. President Lee will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on strengthening bilateral cooperation across a wide spectrum of areas, including shipbuilding, trade, investments, AI, semiconductors, critical and emerging technologies and people-to-people connect. They will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. 

The India-South Korea strategic ties have been on an upswing in the last several years and the upcoming visit of President Lee underscores the shared aspiration of both countries to further strengthen the existing areas of cooperation while expanding collaboration in new and emerging areas of mutual interest.

Meanwhile, the bilateral trade between the two countries for January to October 2025 was $21.5 billion. In 2024, the bilateral trade stood at $25.1 billion. Major items of India’s exports to South Korea are aluminum, cereals, iron and steel. Besides, South Korea is the 15th largest FDI investor of India. Total investment made by that country into India in 2024 amounted to $929 million. 

The CNX Nifty is currently trading at 24314.20, up by 117.45 points or 0.49% after trading in a range of 24096.05 and 24327.10. There were 36 stocks advancing against 13 stocks declining on the index.

The top gainers on Nifty were Hindustan Unilever up by 4.51%, Nestle up by 2.07%, JSW Steel up by 2.04%, Power Grid Corporation up by 1.86% and Max Healthcare Inst up by 1.80%. On the flip side, Wipro down by 3.02%, HDFC Life Insurance down by 2.28%, HCL Technologies down by 1.10%, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries down by 1.07% and Mahindra & Mahindra down by 0.66% were the top losers.

Asian equity markets were trading mostly in red; Nikkei 225 slipped 599.34 points or 1.02% to 58,919.00, Taiwan Weighted lost 327.68 points or 0.89% to 36,804.34, Hang Seng declined 196.26 points or 0.75% to 26,198.00, KOSPI dropped 34.13 points or 0.55% to 6,191.92, Straits Times fell 9.4 points or 0.19% to 4,998.43 and Shanghai Composite weakened 4.12 points or 0.1% to 4,051.43, while Jakarta Composite gained 4.58 points or 0.06% to 7,625.96.

European equity markets were trading higher; UK’s FTSE 100 increased 2.58 points or 0.02% to 10,592.57, France’s CAC rose 49.9 points or 0.6% to 8,312.60 and Germany’s DAX gained 164.93 points or 0.68% to 24,319.40.