Indian equity benchmarks wiped out early gains and settled lower for the third day in a row on Wednesday, pulled down by HDFC twins amid persistent foreign fund outflows. Markets made optimistic start, as traders took some support with the government data showing that the factory output rose 1.7 per cent in February, mainly on account of rise in the mining sector and power generation. The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had declined 3.2 per cent in February 2021. Mining output rose 4.5 percent year-on-year in February and electricity was up by 4.5 percent. Some optimism also came as Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran expressed hope that the private sector is expected to accelerate capital expenditure from the second half of the current fiscal and he also asserted that the economic situation is likely to improve during the year. However, key gauges failed to hold on to opening gains and slipped into negative terrain in afternoon deals, as traders turned anxious with data showing that India's retail inflation jumped to a 17-month high of 6.95 percent in March from 6.07 percent in February. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation print for March is well above the consensus estimate. This is the third consecutive month in which inflation has come in above the 6 percent upper bound of the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) mandate, averaging 6.3 percent in January-March. Traders also got worried as the World Trade Organization (WTO) has downgraded its forecast for global GDP growth in 2022 to 2.8% from the previously expected 4.1%. Traders paid no heed towards data showing that country's exports in March 2022 rose 19.76 per cent to $42.22 billion as compared to the year-ago period. In March 2021, exports stood at $35.26 billion. Finally, the BSE Sensex fell 237.44 points or 0.41% to 58,338.93 and the CNX Nifty was down by 54.65 points or 0.31% to 17,475.65.

The US markets were closed on Friday on account of Good Friday holiday.

Indian rupee ended marginally weaker against the American currency on Wednesday. Traders were worried with data showing that India's retail inflation jumped to a 17-month high of 6.95 percent in March from 6.07 percent in February. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation print for March is well above the consensus estimate. However, downfall remain capped with the government data showing that the factory output rose 1.7 per cent in February, mainly on account of rise in the mining sector and power generation. The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had declined 3.2 per cent in February 2021. Also, country's exports in March 2022 rose 19.76 per cent to $42.22 billion as compared to the year-ago period. In March 2021, exports stood at $35.26 billion. On the global front, yen weakened past the 126 yen per dollar mark on Wednesday for the first time since 2002, while the euro was pinned at a one-month low as investors bought the U.S. currency after hawkish comments by Federal Reserve officials. Finally, the rupee ended at 76.17 (Provisional), weaker by 1 paisa from its previous close of 76.16 on Tuesday.

The FIIs as per Wednesday's data were net sellers in both equity and debt segment. In equity segment, the gross buying was of Rs 7089.84 crore against gross selling of Rs 9749.47 crore, while in the debt segment, the gross purchase was of Rs 799.09 crore against gross selling of Rs 853.48 crore. Besides, in the hybrid segment, the gross buying was of Rs 2.76 crore against gross selling of Rs 20.57 crore.

The US markets were closed on Friday on account of Good Friday holiday. Asian markets are trading mostly in red on Monday ahead of China's Q1 GDP numbers. Indian markets fell for a third day running on Wednesday, with rate-sensitive financials and auto stocks leading loses after data showed India's retail inflation soared to a 17-month high of 6.95 percent in March, much above the RBI's upper tolerance band. Indian stock markets remain closed on Thursday and Friday on account of public holidays - Mahavir Jayanti, Dr.Baba Saheb Ambedkar Jayanti, and Good Friday. Today, the markets are likely to start session in red amid weak global cues due to the on-going geo-political situation and rising inflation. Investors will monitor the wholesale-price index (WPI) reading for March that will be announced later in the day. Traders will be concerned as the World Bank cut its economic growth forecast for India and the whole South Asian region, citing worsening supply bottlenecks and rising inflation risks caused by the Ukraine crisis. The international lender lowered its growth estimate for India, the region's largest economy, to 8% from 8.7% for the current fiscal year to March, 2023. However, some respite may come later in the day as India's overall exports (Merchandise and Services) touched an all-time high of $669.65 Billion in April-March 2021-22, jumping by 34.50 per cent over the same period last year. Traders may be taking encouragement with the finance ministry's statement that the focus on capex in the recently announced Budget for the current fiscal year will boost manufacturing and tax revenue collections, thereby keeping India on track to becoming a $5 trillion economy. Some support may come as industry chamber PHDCCI said India is expected to attract $100 billion foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2022-23 on the back of economic reforms and ease of doing business in recent years. It also said the current financial year is expected to attain a GDP growth of more than 8 per cent. Meanwhile, with most states on board to raise revenue so that they do not have to depend on Centre for compensation, the GST Council at its meeting next month is likely to consider a proposal to do away with the 5 per cent slab by moving some goods of mass consumption to 3 per cent and the remaining to 8 per cent categories. There will be some buzz in hotel industry stocks with ICRA's report that the country's hotel industry is expected to return to the pre-COVID level in the current fiscal itself on the back of a significant improvement in demand. Aviation industry stocks will be in focus as Jet fuel prices were hiked by a marginal 0.2 per cent - the eighth straight increase this year - to an all-time high, reflecting a surge in global energy prices. The price of ATF was hiked by Rs 277.5 per kiloliter to Rs 1,13,202.33 per kl (Rs 113.2 per litre) in the national capital. There will be some reaction in textile industry stocks as Textiles Secretary U P Singh said the government's decision to remove import duty on cotton is likely to help bring down prices of the commodity. There will be some important earnings announcements too to keep the markets buzzing.

Support and Resistance: NSE (Nifty) and BSE (Sensex)

Nifty Top volumes

• Tata Steel's unlisted wholly-owned subsidiary -- Tata Steel Mining has successfully completed the acquisition of controlling stake of 90% in Rohit Ferro-Tech. 
• ICICI Bank is planning to raise funds by way of issuance of debt securities including non-convertible debentures/bonds/notes/offshore certificate of deposits in single/multiple tranches in any currency through public/private placement. 
• BPCL and Microsoft have entered into a strategic cloud partnership aimed at accelerating the firm's digital transformation and shaping the future of innovation in the oil and gas industry. 
• HCL Technologies has expanded its global partnership with Avaloq, a leading provider of digital banking solutions.