A man walks past the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building. File
| Photo Credit: PTI

Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty surged in early trade on Tuesday (April 29, 2025) amid persistent foreign fund inflows and easing tariff concerns.

The 30-share Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) benchmark gauge jumped 442.94 points to 80,661.31 in early trade. The NSE Nifty rallied 129.15 points to 24,457.65.

From the Sensex firms, Tata Motors, Reliance Industries, IndusInd Bank, Bharti Airtel, Mahindra & Mahindra, and Axis Bank were the biggest gainers.

Sun Pharma, Nestle, UltraTech Cement, Power Grid, and Bajaj Finance were among the laggards.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) bought equities worth ₹2,474.10 crore on Monday (April 28), according to exchange data.

“The strong pillar of support for the market now is the sustained FII buying for nine days in a row for a cumulative amount of ₹34,940 crore. India’s potential relative outperformance compared to other large economies can support the FII inflows and impart resilience to the market,” V.K. Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist, Geojit Investments Limited, said.

The U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s remark yesterday (April 28) that “I would guess that India would be one of the first trade deals we would sign” is a big positive for India, Mr. Vijayakumar said.

In Asian markets, South Korea’s Kospi index and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng were trading in the positive territory while Shanghai SSE Composite quoted lower.

U.S. markets ended mostly higher on Monday (April 28).

“The domestic equity market is expected to maintain its upward momentum, supported by sustained buying from FIIs, rally in global markets, and strong quarterly earnings. Market sentiment is further buoyed by optimism surrounding a potential India-US trade deal, following remarks from the U.S. Treasury Secretary indicating that India could be among the first countries to finalize such an agreement,” Vikas Jain, head of research at Reliance Securities, said.

India’s industrial production growth remained almost flat at 3% in March sequentially, though, on a year-on-year basis, it slipped from 5.5%, mainly due to poor performance of the manufacturing, mining, and power sectors.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.80% to $65.33 a barrel.

The BSE benchmark index jumped 1,005.84 points or 1.27% to settle at 80,218.37 on Monday (April 28). The Nifty rallied 289.15 points or 1.20% to close at 24,328.50.

The commission said it took note of the report but defended its efforts [File]
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

The EU is lagging behind in the global race to produce microchips, and looks set to fall well short of its target to claim a fifth of the world’s market, the bloc’s auditors said Monday.

“The EU urgently needs a reality check in its strategy for the microchips sector,” said Annemie Turtelboom, a member of the European Court of Auditors.

“This is a fast-moving field, with intense geopolitical competition, and we are currently far off the pace needed to meet our ambitions.”

The disappointing outlook for the European Union comes despite Brussels passing a flagship Chips Act in 2023 aimed at bolstering production in the bloc.

Turtelboom said that at current growth rates, the EU was “nowhere close” to reaching its target of having a 20 percent share of the global microchip market by 2030.

In its own estimates, the European Commission forecasts the EU’s share will only reach 11.7 percent in 2030, up from around 10 percent in 2022.

“Europe needs to compete — and the European Commission should reassess its long-term strategy to match the reality on the ground,” Turtelboom said.

The EU began prioritising local chip production after the coronavirus pandemic triggered supply chain shocks that led to significant shortages.

Leading powers like the United States and China have also ramped up efforts to bolster their own industries.

The auditors’ report said investments by the EU’s competitors “dwarved” that foreseen by the Chips Act.

The bloc’s efforts were also hampered by other factors including a reliance on imports of raw materials, high energy costs, export controls and a shortage of skilled labour, it said.

The commission said it took note of the report but defended its efforts.

“The Chips Act has laid a strong foundation in consolidating Europe’s position in the global semiconductor market after two decades of decline, and put Europe back on the path of growth,” said EU digital spokesman Thomas Regnier.

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A substantial portion of these returns is attributable to the dramatic rise in gold prices in the past four years. Gold prices have more than doubled from Rs 47,452 per 10 grams in April 2021 to Rs 98,955 now. Investments in the yellow metal since 2021 have yielded more than 20 per cent returns. That’s more than what equity funds have delivered in the past four years.
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Many financial advisors consider gold a dead investment that doesn’t generate any income or pay dividends. While that is true to some extent, gold is an excellent diversification tool because its price is not linked with other asset classes. During a geopolitical crisis or periods of high inflation, equities tend to do poorly. But these conditions are good for gold. The negative correlation reduces the portfolio risk.Gold is also a very liquid asset and can be bought and sold across global markets.
Experts forecast a further upside in 2025. Geopolitical tensions have only increased, and the new occupant in the White House has triggered a worldwide tariff war.
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With gold hitting Rs 1 lakh per 10 grams, many investors may be thinking of booking profits. With the removal of the indexation benefit in 2023, gains from gold are now added to the income of the investor and taxed at normal rates.
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