Market Live Updates Today: Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the broader index in India with a gain of 89 points.

Dharmaj Crop Guard, Venus Pipes & Tubes get Sebi nod to float IPOs

Agro chemical manufacturer Dharmaj Crop Guard and steel pipe maker Venus Pipes & Tubes have received regulatory approvals to raise funds through initial public offerings (IPOs). The companies that had filed their preliminary IPO papers with Sebi between December 2021 and January 2022 obtained its "observation" letter on March 29-31, an update with the regulator showed on Monday.

According to the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP), Dharmaj Crop Guard's IPO consists of fresh issue of equity shares worth up to Rs 216 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of up to 14.83 lakh shares by its existing shareholders.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have continued its buying into India as they have net bought shares worth Rs 1,152.21 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have also net purchased shares worth Rs 1,675.01 crore on April 4, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

Morgan Stanley says ‘Bear Market Rally’ is now over

The recent rebound in equity markets will prove short-lived, one of Wall Street’s most vocal bears said on Monday, advising investors to seek refuge in bonds as economic growth slows.

“The bear market rally is over,” Morgan Stanley Chief U.S. Equity Strategist Michael Wilson wrote in a note to clients. “That leaves us more constructive on bonds than stocks over the near term as growth concerns take center stage – hence our doubling down on a defensive bias.”

SEBI forms panel to improve governance norms for market infra institutions

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on April 4 announced the constitution of an ad-hoc committee which will suggest measures to improve the government norms for market infrastructure institutions (MIIs).

The panel will be headed by SEBI's former whole time member G Mahalingam. Other members of the committee are J N Gupta, MD of Stakeholders Empowerment Services; Aarti Nihalani, Partner, Oliver Wyman; Sandip Bhagat, Partner, S&R Associates and Uttam Bagri, Former Chairman, BSE Brokers Forum.

The committee would be tasked with "making recommendations on measures for strengthening the role played by the Governing Board and Committees of MIIs", the market regulator said. They would also be reviewing the requirements related to appointment and role responsibility of directors on the board and key managerial persons (KMPs), it added.

The panel would also "developing effective metrics for monitoring various aspects of the functioning of MIIs and KMPs", "enhancing accountability and transparency" and "reviewing the policy on safekeeping and sharing of information held by MIIs", the press release issued by SEBI stated.

CAD may cross $100 billion in FY23 after hitting a nine-year high in October-December

India's merchandise exports closed FY22 at a new all-time high of $418 billion – a figure that may be exceeded once the final numbers are reconciled. But exports rarely rise in isolation. The country's imports and the trade deficit for the financial year gone by don't make for pretty reading. The deficit could well worsen if global commodity prices remain elevated.

In FY22, India's merchandise imports amounted to $610 billion – 6.4 percent higher than what was imported in FY19, the previous record year for imports. Preliminary data for last month shows the trade deficit just fell short of the record high of $196 billion – set in FY13 – by around $4 billion.

The sharp increase in the merchandise trade deficit has also led to a jump in the current account deficit (CAD). Latest data released last week showed the CAD hit a nine-year high of $23 billion in October-December. The last time the CAD was higher was in the last quarter of 2012, as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data.

Oil rises as uncertainty around supply persists

Oil futures rose in early trading on Tuesday as the potential for more sanctions following alleged war crimes by Russian troops in Ukraine added to concerns about supply disruptions, while Iran nuclear talks stalled.

Brent crude futures were up $1.58, or 1.5 percent, to $109.11 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate futures were up $1.61, or 1.6 percent, to $104.89 a barrel at 0028 GMT.

Both contracts briefly jumped more than $2 a barrel after Japanese industry minister Koichi Hagiuda said the International Energy Agency (IEA) was still working out details for a planned second round of a coordinated oil releases.

India's trade deficit rises 88% in FY22: Govt data

India’s trade deficit rose 87.5 percent to $192.41 billion in 2021-22 as against $ 102.63 billion in the previous year, the government data showed on Monday. While total exports during last fiscal year increased to a record high of $417.81 billion, imports too soared to $610.22 billion, leaving a trade gap of $192.41 billion.

"India’s merchandise import in April 2021-March 2022 was $610.22 billion, an increase of 54.71 percent over $394.44 billion in April 2020-March 2021 and an increase of 28.55 percent over $474.71 billion in April 2019-March 2020,” said a release by Ministry of Commerce and Industry.