The market is expected to open in the red as trends on the SGX Nifty indicate a gap-down opening for the broader index in India with a loss of 235 points.
The BSE Sensex fell 69 points to 57,232, while the Nifty50 corrected 29 points to 17,063 and formed a bearish candle on the daily charts but has defended 17,000 mark, which is expected to act as a crucial support.
As per the pivot charts, the key support levels for the Nifty are placed at 16,987, followed by 16,911. If the index moves up, the key resistance levels to watch out for are 17,180 and 17,297.
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
Wall Street's major indices ended sharply lower on Wednesday, extending their recent rout as Ukraine declared a state of emergency and the US State Department said a Russian invasion of Ukraine remains potentially imminent.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 464.85 points, or 1.38 percent, to 33,131.76, the S&P 500 lost 79.26 points, or 1.84 percent, to 4,225.5 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 344.03 points, or 2.57 percent, to 13,037.49.
Asian Markets
Asia-Pacific shares fell on Thursday as investors continued to watch the escalating situation between Russia and Ukraine. The Shanghai composite in mainland China fell 0.32 percent and the Shenzhen component dropped 0.4 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 1.3 percent. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 declined by 0.73 percent, while the Topix slid by 0.5 percent.
SGX Nifty
Trends on SGX Nifty indicate a gap-down opening for the broader index in India with a loss of 235 points. The Nifty futures were trading around 16,828 levels on the Singaporean exchange.
Oil Prices
Oil prices steadied on Wednesday, holding below 2014 highs, as US officials indicated escalation between Russia and Ukraine was unlikely to result in sanctions on energy supplies from Russia, one of the world's top oil producers.
Brent crude remained unchanged, settling at $96.84 a barrel, after hitting $99.50, its highest since September 2014 on Tuesday. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures ended up 19 cents to $92.10 a barrel. On Tuesday, WTI hit $96.
RBI asks NBFCs to implement core financial services solution by September 2025
Reserve Bank on Wednesday asked certain class of Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFC) to mandatorily implement 'Core Financial Services Solution (CFSS)' by September 30, 2025 in order to provide seamless customer interface as well as have a centralised database.
In a circular, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said it has been decided that Middle Layer and Upper Layer NBFCs with 10 and more 'fixed point service delivery units' as on October 1, 2022 shall be mandatorily required to implement CFSS.
India Ratings pegs India's FY22 GDP growth at 8.6% on data revision
India Ratings has revised downwards its GDP growth forecast for 2021-22 to 8.6 percent from the consensus 9.2 percent projected earlier. The National Statistical Organisation (NSO), which has forecast 9.2 percent real GDP growth for the year, will release the second advance estimate of national income on Monday.
According to an India Ratings analysis, NSO is likely to peg the FY22 real gross domestic product growth at Rs 147.2 lakh crore.
Gold rises as escalating Ukraine crisis spurs safe-haven bids
Gold prices rose on Thursday towards a nine-month high hit earlier this week, as investors sought refuge in safe havens after Ukraine declared an emergency and the West imposed more sanctions on Russia for sending troops into eastern Ukraine.
Spot gold rose 0.3 percent to $1,912.40 per ounce by 0035 GMT, after having hit its highest since June 1 at $1,913.89 per ounce on Tuesday. US gold futures climbed 0.2 percent to $1,913.20.
Eying inflation, US unlikely to block Russia oil sales if Putin invades -officials
The Biden administration is not expected to target Russia's crude oil and refined fuel sector with sanctions cutting off trade, due to concerns about inflation and the harm it could do to its European allies, global oil markets and US consumers, administration officials told Reuters.
The US is betting that letting oil continue to flow out of Russia, the world's third largest crude producer, even if President Vladimir Putin fully invades Ukraine, will help keep a lid on global price spikes and help shield US consumers from added pain at the gasoline pump.
FII and DII data
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have net sold Rs 3,417.16 crore worth of shares, whereas domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have net bought Rs 3,024.37 crore worth of shares in the Indian equity market on February 23, as per provisional data available on the NSE.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE
Three stocks – Indiabulls Housing Finance, Vodafone Idea and Punjab National Bank – are under the F&O ban for February 24. Securities in the ban period under the F&O segment include companies in which the security has crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit.
With inputs from Reuters & other agencies
