Nifty Midcap Leads April Gains; Defence Sector Surges

The Indian equity markets ended the month of April on a strong note, with the Nifty Midcap index emerging as the top performer, registering a gain of 3.94%, followed by a 1.69% rise in the Nifty Smallcap index, a new report said on Saturday. 

This reflects continued investor interest in mid- and small-cap stocks amid broader market optimism, according to data compiled by Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company. 

The benchmark Nifty also delivered a solid performance, rising by 3.46% for the month, while the Nifty Next 50 gained 2.32%.

The Nifty 500 index climbed 3.24%, supported by consistent gains in financial services, consumer discretionary, and energy sectors. 

The Nifty Microcap 250 also participated in the rally, advancing by 1.28%, as per the report.

A key highlight of the month was the Defence sector, which surged by 11.49% in April and posted an impressive 32.03% return over the past year. 

This growth has been fueled by strong government support for self-reliance and sustained investment in the sector.

The Information Technology (IT) sector saw a slight decline of 0.27%, while commodities slipped by 0.07%, affected by global market headwinds and sector-specific concerns.

Factor-based indices such as momentum and quality continued to deliver steady returns.

Meanwhile, enhanced value and low volatility indices also moved higher, and government bond indices posted modest gains, indicating stability in the fixed income space across the 5-year and 10-year G-Sec benchmarks.

Globally, the US markets gave a mixed performance. The S&P 500 declined slightly by 0.21% as gains in IT and consumer staples were offset by losses in energy and healthcare.

The Nasdaq 100 rose by 1.5%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 2.2%.

—IANS

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