The key equity benchmarks continued to trade near flatline with some positive points in the mid-morning trade as border tensions weighed on investor sentiment, offsetting positive developments such as FII inflows and progress in global trade talks. The Nifty traded above the 24,300 level. Pharma shares advanced after declining for the previous trading session.

The weekly Nifty50 Futures & Options (F&O) series expiry has been shifted to today due to the market holiday tomorrow in observance of Maharashtra Day.

At 11:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 12.91 points or 0.02% to 80,301.19. The Nifty 50 index added 1 points or 0.00% to 24,339.20.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.14% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.57%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,235 shares rose and 2,322 shares fell. A total of 197 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, added 1.98% to 17.72.

IPO Update:

The initial public offer of Ather Energy received bids for 1,77,38,198 shares as against 5,33,63,160 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:15 IST on 30 April 2025. The issue was subscribed 0.33 times.

The issue opened for bidding on 28 April 2025 and it will close on 30 April 2025. The price band of the IPO is fixed between Rs 304 and Rs 321 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 46 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Ather Energy, incorporated in 2013, is an Indian electric two-wheeler (E2W) company engaged in the design, development, and in-house assembly of electric scooters, battery packs, charging infrastructure, smart accessories, and supporting software systems.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Pharma index rose 0.96% to 21,884.55. The index declined 1.06% in the previous trading sessions.

Ipca Laboratories (up 2.1%), Lupin (up 2.09%), Alkem Laboratories (up 1.94%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 1.52%) and Biocon (up 1.44%) were the top gainers. Among the other gainers were Cipla (up 1.42%), Dr Reddys Laboratories (up 1.2%), Zydus Lifesciences (up 1.13%), Aurobindo Pharma (up 1.07%) and Granules India (up 1.06%) added.

On the other hand, Natco Pharma (down 1.72%), Abbott India (down 0.81%) and Laurus Labs (down 0.49%) moved lower.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Ceat rallied 7.01% after the company's net profit advanced 2.45% to Rs 99.49 crore on a 3.66% increase in revenue to Rs 3,420.62 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q3 FY25.

Schaeffler India added 3.84% after the company reported a 16.58% jump in standalone net profit to Rs 265.41 crore on a 14.1% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 2,110.02 crore in Q1 CY25 over Q1 CY24.

Punjab & Sind Bank shed 0.53%. The bank's standalone net profit surged 124.45% to Rs 312.78 crore on 32.52% increase in total income to Rs 3,835.70 crore in Q4 FY25 over Q4 FY24.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) added 1.04%. The company reported a 23.91% drop in standalone net profit to Rs 3,214.06 crore in Q4 FY25 as against Rs 4,224.18 crore posted in Q4 FY24. Net sales (excluding excise duty) declined 4.59% year on year (YoY) to Rs 1,11,178.96 crore in the March 2025 quarter.

Global Markets:

Asian markets traded mixed on Wednesday as traders parsed a slew of key economic data in the region.

Australia's first-quarter inflation rose 2.4% compared to the same period last year, higher than the expected 2.3% climb. Meanwhile, China's manufacturing activity fell more than expected to a near two-year low, sliding into contractionary territory in April as the escalating trade war with the U.S. hurts bilateral trade.

Starting with China, the country's manufacturing activity contracted more than expected in April, with the official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) dipping to 49.0'below the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction.

Japan's industrial production in March shrank by 1.1% month-on-month, more than double the expected decline. Retail sales also disappointed, rising 3.1% year-on-year, short of the 3.6% forecast, after a hot streak through early 2024.

Meanwhile, all eyes are now on the Bank of Japan, which kicked off its policy meeting today. Markets expect rates to remain steady at 0.5% when the decision lands on Thursday.

Across the Pacific, U.S. stocks posted their sixth straight day of gains on Tuesday, driven by cooling Treasury yields and renewed optimism on the trade front. The Dow climbed 0.8%, while both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq notched up about 0.6% gains.

President Trump added to the cheer, signaling positive progress on tariff negotiations with India'coming along great, he said. Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent noted that substantial talks are underway with Japan and hinted that a deal with South Korea might be on the horizon.

US consumer confidence took a hit, with the Conference Board's index dropping 7.9 points to 86.0 in April'its lowest reading since May 2020. The Atlanta Fed's GDPNow forecast for Q1 also slipped to -2.7%, while the JOLTS report showed a drop in job openings to 7.192 million.

In corporate news, Coca-Cola managed to fizz up 0.8% despite reporting a dip in Q1 revenue'even price hikes couldn't fully quench investor thirst. Meanwhile, Spotify lost some rhythm, tumbling over 3% after issuing underwhelming guidance for monthly active users.

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