Strong Start To The Week; Cement Stocks Rally

Share markets in India finished on a strong footing tracking positive trend in global markets after the market’s favored candidate, Emmanuel Macron, won the first round of the French presidential election. At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex closed higher by 291 points, whereas the NSE Nifty finished higher by 99 points. The S&P BSE Midcap ended up by 1% while the S&P BSE Small Cap Index ended up by 0.8%.

Among the BSE sectoral indices, only healthcare sector witnessed selling pressure. Gains were largely seen in stocks from realty sector and capital goods sector.

ACC Ltd share price gained as much as 7.4% to reach a six months high level. The company reported better-than-expected profit for March 2017 quarter, helped by stronger cement sales volume. Quarterly sales volume at ACC’s cement segment rose 4% as impact from government’s move of notebandi declined, the reports noted.

Cement stocks were among the biggest gainers today with the share prices of India Cements and Prism cement leading with gains of 7.1% & 7% respectively.

IT stocks fell on continued concerns over US President Donald Trump’s order last week to a review the country’s visa program to encourage hiring Americans. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, Infosys Ltd and Wipro Ltd dropped more than 1% each.

Indian firms like TCS, Infosys, and Wipro are top beneficiaries of the H1B visa program, using it to send computer engineers to service clients in the US, their largest overseas market.

Stock markets in Asia finished mixed as of the most recent closing prices. The Nikkei 225 gained 1.37% and the Hang Seng rose 0.41%. The Shanghai Composite lost 1.37%. European markets are sharply higher today with shares in France leading the region. The CAC 40 is up 4.32% while Germany’s DAX is up 2.86% and London’s FTSE 100 is up 1.79%.