Cleveland Federal Reserve Bank President Loretta Mester has said it was too early to tell whether the US central bank would raise its benchmark interest rate at its next policy meeting in early May. Mester said she still saw "somewhat more persistent" inflation than the median forecast of her colleagues, and pointed to uncertainty over the duration and magnitude of recent financial sector difficulties. In March, the Fed raised interest rates to between 4.75% and 5%, indicating there may not be another peak rate rise.

Johnson & Johnson's shares increased 3% on Wednesday after the company received the support of around 60,000 people for its $8.9 billion settlement to resolve talc-related lawsuits, which could bring an end to the case. Analysts were positive about the settlement that is significantly larger than the original offer of $2 billion. J&J said the settlement would enable it to proceed with its plans to list its consumer health unit Kenvue. The company also condemned the actions of plaintiffs' lawyers, saying that the talc claims lacked scientific merit.

Dow up 57.17 points, S&P 500 down 6.16 points, and Nasdaq Composite slips 61.98 points

Shrugging off weak global cues, the benchmark indices closed in positive territory for the fourth straight trading session on the back of gains in IT and financial shares. A day ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy review, the 30-share BSE Sensex surged 583 points to settle at the nearly four-week high of 59,689.31. Nifty ended above 17,550 points. The RBI is expected to announce a 25 basis point rate hike in its policy announcement on Thursday before taking a pause, which is expected to be a positive for the market.“Although we believe that the market's short-term structure is strong, transitory overbought situations may cause some profit-taking at higher levels. The current resistance level for day traders would be 17,600-17,650, while the important support area would be 17,450-17,400. The uptrend would be at risk if it fell below the 17,400 level,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities.Here are stock recommendations for Thursday:

Kaustubh Belapurkar of Morningstar India tells you the important things to keep in mind if you want to invest in the US Stock Market.

Price trends, a very important tool when it comes to technical analysis, is something we all have heard of. In this video, Neha Vashishth of ET markets talks about the 6 techniques used for identifying trends. Watch!

Fear gauge index India VIX was down by 1.33% from 12.58 to 12.41 levels. Volatility has been falling from the last five trading sessions and giving comfort to the bulls.

In January, February and March, index funds saw inflows worth Rs 6,736.52 crore, 5,813.16 and 6,244.30, respectively, in as many as 146, 152 and 163 schemes, respectively, according to data released by Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi).

Bonus shares are fully paid additional shares issued by a company to its existing shareholders. When a firm issues bonus shares, its shareholders do not have to incur any extra costs to get them. The number of bonus shares you receive depends on the number of shares of the firm you already hold.

On a closing basis, 17,555 level will be crucial to watch out for on Nifty50, and if this is crossed, then the next major target is 17,700, Palviya said.

Closing Bell: Sensex extends winning run to 4th session, jumps 583 pts; Nifty tops 17,550; Nykaa rallies 8%, HDFC Bank 3%.

European stocks slipped slightly on Wednesday as weak economic data raised concerns about the euro zone's economic recovery. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell by 0.2%, while industrial goods and services firms fell by 1.6%, and the utilities sector climbed 1.4%. Despite a promising start to the year, European stocks experienced their worst March since 2020 due to mixed economic data and fears of a recession. Euro zone government bond yields rose after the European Central Bank warned of the need for stronger monetary policy measures if the area ends up in a wage-price spiral.

In Q4FY23, consumer electrical companies continued to see weak consumer sentiment, according to Phillip Capital. The report also highlighted that primary volumes were weak in January 2023 but saw a strong pickup in February 2022 for seasonal products such as fans and A/Cs due to early summer. However, unseasonal rains in March 2023 affected the volumes. While the B2B portfolio continues to witness growth, the B2C portfolio is lagging. ETMarkets filtered out 5 stocks from the consumer electricals pack that gained between 15-100% in the past year. Interestingly, Phillip Capital is optimistic about these five stocks and has recommended a "BUY" call.

It is majorly owned by public shareholders with 61.35% holding, while promoters have about 38.65% stake in the company. Among the public shareholders, mutual funds have a combined stake of 2.5%, as of the March quarter, while foreign investors own 6.40%.

Dr Fereidun Fesharaki, Chairman, FGE, says the oil market is like a big swimming pool. If you take one bucket of water from one side and throw it to the other side, it is still the same swimming pool. Earlier, the Russians were supplying a great deal of oil to Europe, and the Saudis, Iraqis, and Kuwaitis and the US were supplying China. Now, China and India are buying more from Russia and less Saudi crude, less Middle East crude, less US crude, less Kuwaiti crude, less Iraqi crude. So the market is balancing itself still. If there is a willing buyer and a willing seller, oil moves.

The Sensex has taken its total gain in the last 4 days to over 2,000 points as it touched the day's high at 59,650.50. In the last 4 sessions, Dalal Street investors have turned richer by Rs 9 lakh crore as the total market capitalisation of all BSE-listed companies rose to Rs 260.96 lakh crore today.

Delivery volume is an important indicator which shows whether the buying interest is originating from investors with a long-term view or through traders who speculate to make a quick buck in a short span of time.

A strong brand helps a company's weather storms of an economic slowdown or inflationary pressure. Each sector has its own matrix of advertisement costs which is the most important element for these companies.

A stock split is usually done to increase the liquidity of the stock in the market. The rationale behind the split is to widen the shareholders base by making the equity shares more affordable to small investors.

The list applies different algorithms for all NSE stocks. We have selected stocks wherein the average stock report plus score is a minimum of 8. The average score is based upon the five key pillars i.e. earnings, fundamentals, relative valuation, risk and price momentum.

RRVL's fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) arm Reliance Consumer Products (RCPL) has of late been aggressively building its presence in the segment, launching a slew of products, ranging from beverages under the iconic brand Campa to home and personal care items.

Check out Stock Reports Plus, powered by Refinitiv, for price targets of over 4,000 listed stocks along with detailed company analysis focusing on five key components - earnings, fundamentals, relative valuation, risk and price momentum to generate standardized scores. SR+ Reports is a complimentary offering to ETPrime members. Click here to know more.

For the quarter ended December, Tata Steel, the country’s largest steel producer, reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 2,223 crore primarily because of weak profitability both in India and Europe businesses. The steel maker’s operating margin shrunk to 7.3% from as high as 26% a year ago.

The Nifty50 index took support at the 16,800 level after 11% correction from the top. Index has formed a base at support for 10 days followed by a breakout above the 17,200 level. It is a positive development.

In the recent third quarter, Bajaj Finance reported its highest-ever consolidated quarterly profit after tax of Rs 2,973 crore, registering a growth of 40% year-on-year. The net interest income (NII) for the same period increased by 24% to Rs 7,435 crore.

The Street is worried about the risks of recession and potential cut in FY24 revenue. However, sharp decline in attrition has greatly reduced margin headwinds from war for talent. Cross-currency tailwinds (USD depreciating against USD/GBP) are expected to be significant this quarter, thereby boosting reported revenue growth.

Nuvama Institutional Equities maintained a buy rating on Aarti Industries with a target price of Rs 776. “We recently visited a plant of Aarti Industries (AIL) and interacted with its management,” said the note.

About 23 stocks in the financial sector are trading below their 5-year average P/E multiple, followed by 18 in chemicals, 14 each in fast moving consumer goods and healthcare, 12 in automobile and auto ancillaries, and 10 in banks, data compiled by ETMarkets from Ace Equity showed.

"The valuation of the stocks is reasonable, though still not cheap. The relative premium to the region has halved from a record peak and the returns would be driven by 17%/15% earnings growth in 2023/24. Returns will likely be backloaded," it added.

New Zealand's benchmark rate is now among the highest in the developed world, and the bank's aggressive action stood in contrast to Australia's central bank, which on Tuesday decided to pause its round of rate hikes and leave its benchmark rate at 3.6%.

The 30-share Sensex was trading at 59,353.46 up by 247.02 points or 0.42% while the Nifty50 was up by 69.50 points or 0.40% at 17,467.55 in early trade.

Sensex gains over 100 points, Nifty above 17,400; Bajaj twins rise 2% each; Yes Bank, Future Consumer, NBCC are some of the top gainers in the morning trade.

In the Nifty200 pack, five stocks closed above their 200 DMA (Daily Moving Averages) on April 3, according to stockedge.com's technical scan data. The 200 DMA is used as a key indicator by traders for determining the overall trend in a particular stock. As long as the stock is priced above the 200-day SMA on the daily time frame, it is generally considered to be in an overall uptrend. Take a look:

In the Nifty500 pack, five stocks crossed their previous 5-year high values at the close on April 3, suggesting bullishness in counters, according to stockedge.com's technical scan data. Take a look

The prices of this company have been sliding lower since the start of this year. However, it formed a higher low in March and crossed the swing high. This confirms the formation of a bottom on the charts. The price has given a symmetrical triangle breakout by surpassing the upper trendline resistance, which suggests a sharp upside in the price in the short term.

The markets on Monday remained within a tight range with the Nifty ending the day with a small gain. Although the day started in the positive zone, the stocks soon lost their glitter. Some stock-specific opportunities are now opening up.

ET Now spoke to various experts and here's what they have to recommend for today's trading session. Kunal Bothra has a buy/sell recommendation on Bajaj Auto and ICICI Pru while Nooresh Merani has a buy/sell recommendation on SBI and Indian Hotels for today's trading session. Check out the targets and stoploss.

Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 30 points, or 0.17 per cent, lower at 17,545, signaling that Dalal Street was headed for negative start on Wednesday. Here are some stocks which are expected to see some action in trade today.

India VIX was down by 2.74% from 12.94 to 12.58 on Monday. Volatility has been falling from the last four trading sessions which is giving some comfort to the bulls.On the options front, the weekly maximum Call OI is placed at 17700 and then towards 17500 strikes while the maximum Put OI is placed at 17000 and then towards 17200 strikes

Overnight a four-day winning streak for Wall Street indexes ended, with all three major indexes dropping, and interest rate expectations were dialled down after data showed U.S. job openings hit their lowest level in nearly two years in February.

The Fed in late March raised rates by a quarter percentage point, to between 4.75% and 5%. The decision was haunted by banking sector troubles that led policymakers to say that a tightening in financial conditions would likely weigh on economic activity.

The overall structure of the counter is lucrative, as it is trading above its important moving averages. MACD (moving average convergence divergence) is supporting the current strength, whereas the momentum indicator RSI (relative strength index) is also positively poised.

Overnight a four-day winning streak for Wall Street indexes ended, with all three major indexes dropping, and interest rate expectations were dialled down after data showed U.S. job openings hit their lowest level in nearly two years in February.

Jain has grown Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based GQG by going against the tide of what he calls “comfort investing” — making decisions by committee rather than taking risks on undervalued public shares.

Trading in interest rate futures shows bets are now tilted toward a pause by the Fed in May, with odds of a 25-basis point rate hike at 42%, compared with nearly 60% before the data, according to CME Group's Fedwatch tool.

Bajaj Finance reported a strong 20% year-on-year growth in new loan bookings in the quarter ended March, with the figure touching a record high in FY23.

The New Delhi briefing to the panel by Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch was her first, and an important one, said these people. Henceforth, she will not appear before the committee unless required.

Acre had earlier raised its all-cash offer to ₹243 crore from ₹230 crore offered in February. It is expected to be the front runner to be declared the winning bidder as rival Asset Reconstruction Co India (Arcil) has not yet made a competing bid.

ASIFMA describes itself as an independent, regional trade association comprising over 165 leading financial institutions from both the buy and sell sides, including banks, asset managers, professional services firms and market infrastructure service providers.

Usually, the discount should narrow ahead of the closure of the merger and not widen, but what defies this logic is the continued selling of Indian equities by overseas funds, especially in banking and finance stocks.