Markets retreat by 1% as doubts rise over ceasefire terms

Broader markets continue to outpeform

Welcome to Aftermarket Report, a newsletter where we do a quick daily wrap-up of what happened in the markets, both in India and globally.

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In our latest episode of In The Money by Zerodha video series, we focus on the indicators that help us read intraday market structure and identify short-term trends. As Nassim Taleb highlights through the Ludic Fallacy, we often fall into the trap of assuming the future will mirror the structured patterns of the past. Indicators are merely “market footprints”—they describe where the market has been, but they cannot eliminate the uncertainty of where it is going next.

This episode breaks down five key indicators, ranging from standard TWAP to custom-built Weighted Market Breadth, to help you find more reliable ways to identify intraday trends and potential turning points.

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Market Overview

Nifty opened with a gap down of 88 points at 23,909, tracking lacklustre global cues and an uptick in crude prices amid uncertainty around ceasefire terms. The index saw immediate selling pressure in the opening minutes, slipping sharply toward the 23,780–23,800 zone within the first half hour.

After the initial fall, Nifty attempted a recovery, moving back toward the 23,850–23,900 range by late morning. However, the bounce lacked strength, and the index remained volatile, struggling to hold higher levels through the first half.

In the second half, weakness resurfaced, with Nifty gradually drifting lower and breaking below the 23,800 mark. Selling intensified post 1 PM, dragging the index toward intraday lows near the 23,680 zone around 2:30 PM.

A mild recovery in the final hour helped the index bounce back toward the 23,780–23,800 range, as Nifty eventually closed at 23,775.10, marking a weak session characterised by early selling, failed recovery attempts, and sustained pressure through the afternoon and modest recovery in the end.

Looking ahead, markets are likely to remain sensitive to global geopolitical developments, risk appetite, and key domestic cues.

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Broader Market Performance:

The broader market had a mixed session today. Of the 3,323 stocks that traded on the NSE, 1,573 advanced, 1,670 declined, and 80 remained unchanged.

Sectoral Performance:

Nifty Metal was the top gainer, rising 1.25%, while Nifty Bank was the top loser, down 1.58%. Overall, 4 sectors closed in green, and 8 sectors ended in red.

Here’s the trend of FII-DII activity from the last 5 days:

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Change in OI for the day

The following is the change in OI for Nifty contracts expiring on 13th April:

• The maximum Call Open Interest (OI) is observed at 24,000, followed by 24,200 & 24,300, indicating potential resistance at the 24,100 -24,200 levels.

• The maximum Put Open Interest (OI) is observed at 23,500, followed by 23,800 & 23,800, suggesting support at 23,600-23,500.

Note: OI is subject to multiple interpretations; however, generally, an increase in Call OI indicates resistance in a falling market, while an increase in Put OI indicates support in a rising market.

Source: Sensibull

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Tijori is an investment research platform that has constructed niche indices for various themes and sub-sectors. They help you understand the market performance of narrow slices of the market. You can also track the Promoter buying and other interesting stuff, like Capex activity by the companies in the Tijori App’s idea dashboard

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What’s happening in India

Tata Consultancy Services reported strong Q4FY26 results with net profit rising 29% QoQ to ₹13,718 crore and revenue up 5.4% to ₹70,698 crore. Margins improved to 25.3%, while deal wins remained robust with $12 billion TCV for the quarter and $40.7 billion for FY26. Dive deeper

TCS added 2,356 employees in Q4FY26, though attrition edged up to 13.7% on an LTM basis, indicating continued talent churn. Dive deeper

Wipro Limited will consider a share buyback alongside Q4 results on April 16, following a 20% stock decline YTD and ongoing debate on capital allocation vs AI investments. Dive deeper

The Indian rupee weakened by 9 paise to 92.63/$ amid continued geopolitical tensions in West Asia and uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz. Dive deeper

HFCL shares jumped 6% after its subsidiary HTL secured ₹1,366 crore optical fibre cable orders from a Tier-1 client. Dive deeper

KEC International shares were in focus after winning fresh orders worth ₹2,518 crore across multiple business segments, signalling strong execution momentum. Dive deeper

Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited signed a technology collaboration agreement with South Korea’s E2S to enhance its excitation systems capabilities. Dive deeper

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What’s happening globally

Oil prices surged over 4% as doubts around a fragile Middle East ceasefire heightened fears of continued supply disruptions. Concerns remain that flows through the Strait of Hormuz will stay restricted, with shippers still hesitant to resume transit. Dive deeper

Refined fuel prices in Asia fell sharply in line with crude after a tentative US–Iran ceasefire, but remain elevated, signalling underlying supply tightness. Dive deeper

US initial jobless claims rose moderately by 16,000 to 219,000, indicating a stable labour market and giving the Federal Reserve room to hold rates amid geopolitical uncertainty. Dive deeper

The US economy grew at a slower 0.5% annualised rate in Q4 2025, revised down from earlier estimates due to weaker investment and softer consumer spending. Dive deeper

Germany’s exports rose 3.6% MoM to a three-year high of €135.2 billion in Feb 2026, driven by strong shipments to EU and non-EU countries, beating expectations. Dive deeper

Eurozone bond yields rose as ceasefire hopes remained uncertain, with Donald Trump signalling continued military presence unless a deal with Iran is reached. Dive deeper

The Walt Disney Company plans to cut up to 1,000 jobs, largely in marketing, as part of restructuring efforts initiated before CEO Josh D’Amaro took charge. Dive deeper

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Management chatter

In this section, we highlight interesting comments from the management of major companies and policymakers in the Indian and Global Economies.

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Aarthi Subramanian, ED - President and COO of TCS, on AI adoption by the company:

“FY26 marked a pivotal year for enterprise AI adoption. In Q4, our annualized AI revenues surpassed $2.3 billion, driven by the accelerated deployment of AI solutions. We experienced strong deal momentum across new services in Enterprise Transformation, Digital Engineering, and Cloud Modernization. Our investment in HyperVault was a catalyst in forging strategic partnerships with OpenAI, AMD, and ABB, further strengthening our positioning across Infrastructure-to-Intelligence.” - Link

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🧑🏻‍💻Have you checked out The Chatter?

Every week, we listen to the big Indian earnings calls—Reliance, HDFC Bank, and even smaller logistics firms—and copy the full transcripts. We then remove the fluff and keep only the sentences that could move a share price: a surprise price hike, a cut-back on factory spending, a warning about weak monsoon sales, or a hint from management on RBI liquidity. We add a quick, one-line explainer and a timestamp so you can trace the quote back to the call. The whole thing lands in your inbox as one sharp page of facts you can read in three minutes—no 40-page decks, no jargon, just the hard stuff that matters for your trades and your macro view.

Go check out The Chatter here.

We’re now on WhatsApp!

We’ve started a WhatsApp channel for The Daily Brief where we’ll share interesting soundbites from concalls, articles, and everything else we come across throughout the day. You’ll also get notified the moment a new video or article drops, so you can read or watch it right away. Here’s the link.

See you there!

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Calendars

In the coming days, we have the following significant events and corporate actions:

That’s it from us for today. We’d love to hear your feedback in the comments, and feel free to share this with your friends to spread the word!