The market is expected to open in the red on January 19, tracking weak global cues after weak US economic data fueled recession worries. Trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a negative opening for the broader index in India.
The BSE Sensex rallied 390 points to 61,046, while the Nifty50 jumped 112 points to 18,165 and formed a bullish candle on the daily charts with higher high higher low formation for the fourth straight session.
As per the pivot charts, the key support level for the Nifty is at 18,069, followed by 18,034, and 17,976. If the index moves up, the key resistance levels to watch out for are 18,185, followed by 18,221 and 18,279.
Stay tuned to Moneycontrol to find out what happens in the currency and equity markets today. We have collated a list of important headlines across news platforms which could impact Indian as well as international markets:
US Markets
The S&P 500 and the Dow lost almost 2 percent on Wednesday, their biggest daily drops in more than a month, after weak economic data fueled recession worries while hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials soured investor moods further.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 613.89 points, or 1.81 percent, to 33,296.96 and the S&P 500 lost 62.11 points, or 1.56 percent, to 3,928.86. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 138.10 points, or 1.24 percent, to 10,957.01.
Asian Markets
Shares in the Asia-Pacific traded lower on Thursday after tracking losses on Wall Street overnight. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 0.11 percent. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 and Topix traded down 0.96 percent and 0.88 percent respectively after Japan recorded another trade deficit for December, one day after the Bank of Japan surprised markets by keeping its yield curve tolerance band unchanged. South Korea’s Kospi fell 0.66 percent.
SGX Nifty
Trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a negative opening for the broader index in India with a loss of 99 points. The Nifty futures were trading around 18,122 levels on the Singaporean exchange.
Fed policymakers call for further rate hikes to beat inflation
Federal Reserve policymakers on Wednesday signaled they will push on with more interest rate hikes, with several supporting a top policy rate of at least 5 percent even as inflation shows signs of having peaked and economic activity is slowing.
"I just think we need to keep going, and we'll discuss at the meeting how much to do," Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said in an interview with the Associated Press. The remarks appeared to reflect a widely shared view among her fellow policymakers, most of whom as of December had penciled in a 5.00-5.25 percent policy rate in coming months.
Foreign institutional investors (FII) have net-sold shares worth Rs 319.23 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DII) have net-purchased shares worth Rs 1,225.96 crore on January 18, as per provisional data available on the NSE.
US economy losing momentum as retail sales post biggest drop in 12 months
US retail sales fell by the most in a year in December, pulled down by declines in purchases of motor vehicles and a range of other goods, putting consumer spending and the overall economy on a weaker growth path heading into 2023.
The second straight monthly decrease in retail sales, which are mostly goods, is undercutting production at factories. Manufacturing output recorded its biggest drop in nearly two years in December, while monthly producer prices also tumbled, other data showed on Wednesday.
Retail sales plummeted 1.1 percent last month, the biggest drop since December 2021. Data for November was revised to show sales decreasing 1.0 percent instead of 0.6 percent as previously reported. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast sales decreasing 0.8 percent. Retail sales rose 6.0 percent year-on-year in December.
IndusInd Bank reports strong growth in Q3 net profit
IndusInd Bank, on January 18, announced its results for the quarter ending December 2022. The bank reported strong growth in net profit and healthy year-on-year (YoY) loan figures. The lender recorded a net profit of Rs 1,963 crore, up by a massive 58 percent from last year. The net interest income (NII) of the bank stood at Rs 4,495 crore, up by 18 percent on a YoY basis.
Operating profit for the quarter that ended December 2022 recorded an 11 percent jump to Rs 3,686 crore from last year’s Rs 3,205 crore. The bank recorded a 19 percent YoY loan growth in its balance sheet to Rs 2.7 lakh crore.
The lender’s deposits stood at Rs 3.2 lakh crore, recording 14 percent YoY growth. Its Current Account and Savings Account (CASA) too, went up by 14 percent YoY to Rs 1.3 lakh crore.
Hindustan Unilever, Asian Paints, AU Small Finance Bank, Can Fin Homes, L&T Technology Services, Happiest Minds Technologies, Havells India, Hindustan Zinc, Anant Raj, IIFL Wealth Management, IndiaMART InterMESH, ICICI Securities, Mphasis, Polycab India, PVR, and Sterling and Wilson Renewable Energy will be in focus ahead of quarterly earnings on January 19.
Oil eases 1 percent as US recession worries offset China recovery hopes
Oil prices fell about 1 percent on Wednesday, surrendering early gains as worries about a possible US recession outweighed optimism that China's lifting of COVID-19 curbs will fuel demand for crude in the world's top oil importer.
Brent futures fell 94 cents, or 1.1 percent, to settle at $84.98 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 70 cents, or 0.9 percent, to settle at 79.48.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE
The National Stock Exchange has retained Delta Corp, Manappuram Finance, L&T Finance Holdings, and GNFC under its F&O ban list for January 18. Securities thus banned under the F&O segment include companies where derivative contracts have crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit.
(With inputs from Reuters and other agencies)
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
