Indian equity markets surged sharply at the opening bell on Friday, following a global rally sparked by US President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for 75 countries, including India, amid intensifying trade tensions with China.
The benchmark BSE Sensex opened 1,061.26 points higher at 74,941.53, while the broader NSE Nifty rose by 354.90 points to start the day at 22,754.05. The buoyancy in Indian indices mirrored investor optimism worldwide, triggered by the temporary de-escalation of global trade frictions.
Ajay Bagga, banking and market expert, attributed the positive momentum to developments in the US.
“Indian markets will open with a gap up largely due to the Wednesday US market surge following the Trump reciprocal tariffs postponement for 90 days. However, the Thursday fall in the US markets led to a fall in the Gift Nifty as well. Hence, versus a 700 plus rally on Wednesday, on Friday morning, the Gift Nifty premium to the domestic Nifty future close of Wednesday afternoon is down to 400 points, Si positive open but momentum is reduced,” he explained.
He cautioned that profit-booking could occur ahead of a long weekend.
“With Monday again being an Indian market holiday, positions will be reduced this afternoon. So a gap-up open could end with a flattish Indian market. The US dollar index falling to 100 levels (DXY) is positive for EM flows eventually, but the sentiment is fragile and frayed. So, caution is advised. Gold has seen sustained inflows as safe haven buying has gone into gold, Japanese yen and Swiss Franc,” he added.
The initial surge in US markets came after President Trump imposed a steep increase in tariffs on Chinese goods—raising them to 125 per cent—in retaliation to Beijing’s move to hike its tariffs on US imports from 34 per cent to 84 per cent, effective 10 April.
Alongside this, Trump granted a 90-day deferral of higher tariffs on 75 other countries involved in trade negotiations with Washington, which provided brief relief to investors.
Nonetheless, the relief rally proved short-lived. On Thursday, Wall Street witnessed a sharp reversal, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling by 1,014 points and the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunging by 4.5 per cent. The pullback underlined the enduring uncertainty over the global trade regime.
In India, market volatility was reflected in safe-haven demand, with gold prices climbing to an all-time high of ₹91,500 per 10 grams. Likewise, traditional refuge currencies like the Japanese yen and Swiss franc also saw increased inflows.
The US Dollar Index (DXY) declined to 100, a development seen as potentially favourable for emerging markets in the longer term. However, analysts remain wary of the prevailing fragile sentiment.
On the domestic corporate front, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) disappointed the markets with quarterly earnings below expectations. Several brokerage firms responded by slashing their target prices for the IT behemoth, which weighed on sectoral sentiment.
Adding to global anxiety, a White House official confirmed that China’s average tariff rate would rise to 145 per cent, intensifying fears of a drawn-out trade war.
Despite Friday’s early exuberance, experts urged investors to tread with caution amid the mix of positive triggers and deepening economic uncertainty.
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