Indian share markets ended today's volatile trading session on a negative note.

After a weak opening, benchmark indices rose as buying emerged following a 50 basis points repo rate hike by RBI.

However, equity markets lost momentum in afternoon trade as volatility increased and selling emerged in index heavyweight stocks.

At the closing bell, the BSE Sensex stood lower by 215 points (down 0.4%).

Meanwhile, the NSE Nifty closed lower by 60 points (down 0.4%).

State Bank of India, Tata Steel, and Titan were among the top gainers today.

Bharti Airtel, ITC, and Reliance Industries, on the other hand, were among the top losers today.

The SGX Nifty was trading at 16,337, down by 92 points, at the time of writing.

The BSE MidCap index and the BSE SmallCap index ended down by 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively.

Among the sectoral indices, stocks in the FMCG sector, energy sector, and banking sector witnessed selling.

On the other hand, some buying was witnessed in the IT sector, auto sector, and metal sector.

Aluminum companies in India were trading on a positive note with NALCO ending 1% higher.

Two out of three listed REITs in India ended on a positive note today. According to a US$44 bn wealth manager backed by Bain Capital, Indian infrastructure and REIT investments present a good opportunity for investors seeking a hedge against inflation.

Defense stocks were in focus following the Indian government's approval of Rs 763.9 bn for the modernization of military projects.

Shares of MRPL hit their 52-week highs today.

With volatility easing, several Indian stocks have delivered multi-bagger returns in a quick time. However, there are still doubts about whether a bear market will follow or will the markets rise going ahead.

Asian stock markets ended on a firm note today, following gains on Wall Street, with tech firms seeing huge buying interest on hopes a long-running crackdown on the sector by China is coming to an end.

The Nikkei ended 1% higher while the Shanghai Composite added 0.7%. The Hang Seng stood out as the big gainer and rose 2.2%.

European shares fell today quickly erasing opening gains. Banking stocks in Europe took a hit as Credit Suisse said it was likely to see a group-wide loss in the second quarter, a further blow to the embattled lender.

US stock futures are trading on a negative note with the Dow Futures trading down by 146 points.

The rupee is trading at 77.74 against the US$.

Gold prices for the latest contract on MCX are trading flat at Rs 50,935 per 10 grams.

Speaking of the current stock market scenario, amid the ongoing volatility, have a look at the two charts below, in the order, they have been placed:

Near Term Volatility in Sensex Compensated by Long Term Gains

The year-on-year change in the Sensex was hardly predictable but someone who stayed invested multiplied every lakh nearly 14 times.

Timing the markets could be suicidal as valuations and volatility put the markets in a see-saw mode.

As an individual investor, you need to sit tight over high conviction stocks and invest consistently to see the magic of compounding.

Because 2022 could be extremely profitable, over time, provided you reset your portfolio with the right kind of safe assets and safe stocks.

In news from the banking space, the Monetary Policy Committee today unanimously decided to increase the repo rate by 50 bps to 4.90%.

The rate hike was on expected lines as concerns over soaring inflation and rupee depreciation remain elevated.

Earlier, in an off-cycle policy decision, the central bank had raised the repo rate by 40 bps in May 2022.

The rate-sensitive shares such as banks, NBFC, and other related sectors have been under pressure in the run-up to the policy meeting owing to a possibility of a steeper rate hike coupled with a hike in CRR rate.

So far, the Nifty Bank has tanked 15% from its all-time high registered in November 2021. Whereas select stocks from the NBFC space have plummeted in the range of 30 - 50%.

However, today post the announcement of the repo rate hike - the State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda rebounded into the positive zone to trade with gains in excess of 1% each.

Moving on to news from the pharma sector, Lupin announced that it has received tentative approval from the US Food & Drug Administration for its abbreviated new drug application, Ivacaftor tablets.

Ivacaftor tablets are used to treat certain types of cystic fibrosis, an inborn disease that causes problems with breathing. These tablets will be manufactured at Lupin's Nagpur facility in India.

According to experts, the approved product had an estimated market size of US 109 m for the twelve months ending March 2022.

Note that shares of the company are nearing their 52-week low and are in a downtrend since the start of the year.

Lupin share prices ended 0.6% higher on the BSE today.

Moving on to news from the fintech space, One Mobikwik Systems is in talks with investors to raise as much as US$ 100 m in equity to finance business expansion.

Co-founder Upasana Taku, said in an interview, that the funds will be used for marketing, hiring people, and making acquisitions.

Taku also mentioned that no decision has been taken on the valuation for the current funding round, although, Mobikwik was valued at about US 700 m last year when it raised funds from Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

Counting American Express Co. and Sequoia Capital among its backers, the company is one of the largest players offering buy now, pay later services in India.

It has more than 100 m registered users and is seeking to scale up the business rapidly.

The Gurugram-based fintech firm deferred the IPO slated for last year following a route in the shares of larger rival Paytm, which went public in November.

Unlisted shares of Mobikwik had taken the brunt of the meltdown in the tech space, according to data from investment platforms that allow trading in private companies.

Mobikwik had turned profitable for the first time in the quarter ending December 2021 and is still planning to go ahead with the IPO at an opportune time.

We will keep you updated on the latest developments in this space. Stay tuned.