Trade Financial News

Shares of Asian Paints Ltd, Berger Paints India Ltd and Kansai Nerolac Paints Ltd rallied 3-5% on Wednesday as crude oil prices eased. Following the news of a two-week ceasefire in the West Asia war, Brent crude slipped to around $93 a barrel from a closing high of $107.9 a barrel on 18 March.Crude derivatives such as solvents, resins and binders comprise around 40% of the raw material basket for paint companies, so higher oil prices weigh on gross margins.

Since the West Asia war began, Godrej Consumer Products Ltd’s (GCPL) shares had dropped nearly 18% till Monday when it announced its March quarter (Q4FY26) business update. The shares have gained about 8% in the past two trading sessions.Margin pressures, given the higher palm oil price, seem to be worrying investors.

Best stocks to buy today (All Buy trades are rates of equity and sell rates are based on F&O)Natco Pharma Ltd: Buy above ₹1,085 | Stop ₹1,005 target | ₹1,220 (multiday)Godawari Power and Ispat Ltd: Buy above ₹285 | Stop ₹275 | Target ₹310 (multiday)KPIT Technologies Ltd: Buy above ₹710 | Stop ₹675 | Target ₹781 (multiday)On Tuesday, the benchmark Sensex and Nifty staged a strong recovery after opening on a weak note, supported by robust buying in IT stocks. The domestic markets initially slipped amid rising geopolitical concerns over the West Asia war and investor caution ahead of the deadline set by US President Donald Trump for a possible agreement with Iran.

India's pharmaceutical reputation, however, was harder to contain.This wasn't an anomaly. It was a pattern.

trade negotiations because it opens access to large public-sector markets.The gross merchandise value (GMV) on the GeM portal fell 7.4% to ₹5.03 trillion in FY26, from ₹5.43 trillion in FY25.“There is a degrowth of 7.4 % in FY26 with respect to FY 24-25 due to the absence of unique/ sporadic procurement. However, the cumulative GMV of ₹18.4 lakh crore (since its inception in 2016) reflects the sustained confidence of buyers, sellers and institutions in a transparent and technology-driven ecosystem improving public procurement.

NEW DELHI: A shortage of refrigerated containers (reefers) caused by the West Asia war is worrying Indian growers of mangoes ahead of the peak export season, according to five people aware of the development.With the war in its second month, key maritime routes, including the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea, have been disrupted, leading to container shortages and higher freight costs. Many containers are stuck in transit due to congestion or are being re-routed, leading to longer shipment cycles.This poses a unique problem for India, which produces 20.68 million tonnes, or 44%, of the world's mangoes annually, the most by any country.

Shares of AWL Agri Business (formerly Adani Wilmar) are down 36% since 21 November after Adani group’s exit. The stock hit a 52-week low of ₹171.19 on 16 March, amid muted financials for the nine months ended December (9MFY26), which added to the pressure.But the worst may be over. Its March quarter (Q4FY26) business update reveals sales volumes grew by 13% year-on-year.

The ministry of ports, shipping and waterways is preparing to roll out about 20 sectoral reforms in the first 90 days of FY27, including the creation of a maritime sector regulator, revamped shipbuilding incentives and measures to increase India’s shipping tonnage, as part of a plan to strengthen the country’s maritime ecosystem and cut logistics costs.The reform push, which is being finalized, is aimed at improving regulatory oversight, boosting domestic shipbuilding, increasing the share of Indian-flagged vessels in global trade and enhancing the ease of doing business across ports, shipping and inland waterways, two people aware of the matter said.“Reform measures like a dedicated maritime regulator, stronger support for shipbuilding and container manufacturing, and a push toward inland waterways and coastal shipping are especially impactful. They not only build domestic capacity but also make logistics more cost-effective and sustainable,” said Pushpank Kaushik, CEO and head of business development at Jassper Shipping, a global shipping and logistics company in Hyderabad.A key proposal under consideration is the setting up of a strengthened maritime regulator by expanding the role of the Directorate General of Shipping, which would be given wider powers over safety regulation, maritime training, ship registration and oversight of shipping operations.

IT sector, according to the data.There has also been a visible surge in companies explicitly branding themselves as AI-focused. At the beginning of FY26, 84 companies in every 10,000 new registrations mentioned ‘AI’ in their names.

Every year, some of India’s largest industrial companies publish sustainability reports that are full of details on the number of trees planted, villages electrified and water bodies restored. And every year, the factories that made those reports possible continue to burn coal, run furnaces and emit carbon at rates that have barely changed in a decade. Both things are true.

Demand for electric cookstoves shot up after the war began as consumers rushed to compensate for a shortage in LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) cylinders. On 12 March, an Amazon India spokesperson told Mint that sales of induction cooktops increased 30X in just two days.Prices of these cooktops, too, have risen, though not abnormally.

Mint, he said crude prices have risen and that some energy infrastructure assets in West Asia have been affected by the war. Even if tensions ease, supplies are unlikely to return to pre-war levels soon, keeping prices elevated for longer.

West Asia crisis with resilient activity indicators and still-supportive demand. Further, the inflation environment too has remained benign.

The Indian rupee lost 10% against the US dollar in 2025-26, making it one of the worst performances in emerging markets. March alone saw a 4.24% drop, the steepest in any single month in six years, with the rupee briefly breaching the 95 level against the dollar. To defend the currency, the Reserve bank of India (RBI) sold dollars heavily from its reserves, which fell by $30.5 billion in March.

Amid daily price swings in crude oil, based on what the US or Iran says on a given day, global growth prospects for 2026 appear grim. Even if the war ends within days, rebuilding energy infrastructure in West Asia, battered by bombings and drone attacks, will take months if not years.

standing out in a falling market, and what’s driving their strength.Lupin is trading at ₹2,335, just shy of its 52-week high of ₹2,376, and is up 11% so far in 2026.An integrated pharmaceutical company, Lupin operates across formulations and APIs, with formulations contributing about 95% of revenue. Geographically, the US remains its largest market, followed by India and other developed and emerging markets.It ranks as the third-largest pharmaceutical player in the US by prescriptions and eighth in the Indian market.Financially, Lupin has delivered steady growth.

₹1.05 lakh per kilolitre, though lower than initially announced.On Wednesday, state-run oil marketing companies briefly hiked jet fuel prices by more than 100% before rolling back the increase for domestic scheduled flights following government intervention.International routes, however, will bear the full increase, setting the stage for costlier overseas travel ahead of the peak summer season. With ATF accounting for a substantial share of airline operating costs, carriers are expected to pass on the higher burden, making outbound travel more expensive in the coming weeks.FY26 proved turbulent for Indian equities, with foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) turning decisively bearish amid mounting global headwinds—from US-led tariff disruptions to the West Asia war.Net FPI outflows totalled ₹1.8 trillion in FY26, the highest since records began in 1992, according to a Mint analysis of National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) data, exceeding all previous episodes, including the global financial crisis in FY09.The selloff intensified towards end of the year, with March 2026 alone recording ₹1.2 trillion in outflows, as geopolitical uncertainty fuelled fears of FY27 earnings downgrades and unsettled India’s macroeconomic outlook.

The government is exploring ways to increase domestic production of induction cookers, petrochemicals, and other essential industrial inputs, as the West Asia war shows signs of continuing for some time, according to two people in the know.Officials from the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT), the power ministry and the directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT) reviewed strategies to boost output in sectors that could face supply disruptions if the war continues for the next few months, said one of the people mentioned above.“Discussions centred on accelerating production of induction cookers and vessel heaters, strengthening the petrochemical value chain, and ensuring adequate availability of gunny (bori) bags—seen as critical for both industrial use and agricultural supply chains,” the other person said.The government has already taken pre-emptive steps by cutting import duties on several key petrochemical products to cushion against potential shortages and price spikes.Officials said the move is part of a broader contingency framework, with ministries preparing for multiple scenarios, including a prolonged conflict that could disrupt shipping routes, inflate logistics costs and tighten availability of critical inputs.The government on Thursday announced a temporary waiver on customs duties for select essential petrochemical imports, which will remain in force until 30 June.

move, cleared at Sebi’s March board meeting, allows FPIs to settle funds on a net basis in the cash market, replacing the current system where each leg of a transaction is settled separately. The change is aimed at reducing funding costs and aligning India with global practices, but intermediaries warn it could strain systems and workflows.Some industry participants have also questioned the timing amid volatile global conditions.Under the current gross settlement system, FPIs must fund each transaction independently.

. 28, lasts for only a few more weeks, falling gas prices will likely deliver an economic tailwind later this year. If the stress continues for months, however, economists will start to worry about a slowdown, or even a recession.President Trump in a prime-time speech Wednesday said he would achieve America’s military objectives “very shortly” and vowed to hit Iran “extremely hard over the next two to three weeks.” Equities markets closed little changed Thursday, while U.S. oil futures soared.The U.S.

Mint.A multipolar world could open up new leadership pathways that may not align perfectly with the largest economies, said Sternfels, pointing to emerging growth areas such as artificial intelligence (AI) and data centres.India’s talent, combined with grit and entrepreneurship, gives it a winning edge, said Sternfels, who is serving his second three-year term as head of the consulting firm that has a significant influence across boardrooms and national leaderships.“In a shifting world order, this is India’s leadership moment on multiple dimensions, as it becomes a strategic imperative for organizations globally to re-orient towards India,” he said.Sternfels rejected the idea that global trade is diminishing. Instead, it is growing in different ways, he said.Global trade flow moves like water; if it is blocked somewhere, it finds a different way, said Sternfels, adding that a few free trade agreements were negotiated among countries in the last 12 months, but they do not involve the US.