Nifty Reclaims 10,500, Infosys Rises Ahead Of Q4

Sensex and Nifty moved higher today amid a rebound in global stocks as trade and geopolitical worries ebbed. In global markets, the investor sentiment improved also after US President Donald Trump tweeted an attack on Syria "could be very soon or not so soon at all," allaying fears of an immediate military action that investors fear could lead to wider conflict between Washington and Moscow. In another change of tack, Trump has asked his trade advisers to look at re-joining the Trans Pacific Partnership, a multinational trade pact he withdrew the United States from early last year.

The Sensex was up over 150 points while Nifty moved above 10,500 mark. Metal, pharma and banking stocks led the gains. 

Infosys kicks off the fourth quarter earnings season today. Its shares were up 0.50 per cent. The IT major is expected to announce earnings after market hours today. With improving economic outlook in key markets like the US and higher adoption of outsourcing in Europe and digital services gaining scale, fiscal year 2018-19 looks better for Indian IT companies, say analysts.

Data released yesterday showed domestic retail inflation easing to a five-month low in March, but remained above the Reserve Bank of India's medium-term target, supporting views that monetary policy is likely to remain unchanged at the next review in early June. The RBI, which has kept rates steady since a cut of 25 basis points in August, is widely expected to maintain rates at their current level in the next review in June.

Last week, RBI had lowered its April-September retail inflation projection to 4.7 per cent to 5.1 per cent, from a previous range of 5.1 percent to 5.6 percent released in February. India's consumer price index rose 4.28 percent in March from a year earlier, data released by the Ministry of Statistics showed on Thursday.

Separately, industrial output grew 7.1 percent in February, data released on Thursday showed, in line with 7.0 per cent forecast in a Reuters poll.