The market is likely to open higher as trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a positive start for the broader index in India with a gain of 66.50 points today.
On Thursday, the BSE Sensex gained 160 points to 62,571, while the Nifty50 gained 49 points to 18,609 and formed a bullish candle on the daily charts, taking major support at 18,500.
As per the pivot charts, the key support level for the Nifty is placed at 18,557, followed by 18,536 and 18,502. If the index moves up, the key resistance levels to watch out for are 18,624, followed by 18,645 and 18,678.
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 ended higher on Thursday, snapping a five-session losing streak, as investors interpreted data showing a rise in the weekly jobless claims as a sign the pace of interest rate hikes could soon slow.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 183.56 points, or 0.55 percent, to close at 33,781.48; the S&P 500 gained 29.59 points, or 0.75 percent, to finish at 3,963.51; and the Nasdaq Composite added 123.45 points, or 1.13 percent, at 11,082.00.
Asian Markets
Asian Markets were trading higher in the early trade on Friday with Hang Seng and Nikkei up more than a percent each, while Taiwan Weighted up 0.5 percent.
SGX Nifty
Trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a firm opening for the broader index with gains of 66.50 points. The Nifty futures were trading around 18,794 levels on the Singaporean exchange.
Road transport ministry to launch surety bonds insurance product for infra sector
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) will launch India's first-ever surety bonds insurance product on December 19 to boost liquidity in the infrastructure sector, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday.
Addressing an event organised by industry body CII, Gadkari said Indian highways infrastructure is developing at a rapid pace.
"On December 19, our ministry is launching India's first-ever surety bond insurance product… That is going to give a good relief to the contractors," he said.
Surety bonds are different from corporate bonds and financial guarantees.
Paytm board to consider share buyback on December 13
One 97 Communications Limited, the parent entity of Vijay Shekhar Sharma-promoted Paytm, will hold a board meet on December 13 to consider a proposal for a share buyback, the fintech major disclosed to the exchanges on December 8.
Rating agencies say ban on short-term loan securitisations to crimp volume
The ban imposed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on short-term loan securitisation will hit the industry, especially gold and personal loan segments as also microfinance borrowing, three rating agencies said in separate notes.
The Reserve Bank on December 5 amended the master directions on securitisation of standard assets, barring securitisation of loans with residual maturity of under 365 days with immediate effect, other than for trade receivables.
US jobless claims up modestly last week
Slightly more Americans filed for jobless claims last week but the labor market remains one of strongest parts of the U.S. economy.
Applications for unemployment benefits rose to 230,000 for the week ending Dec. 3, up by 4,000 from the previous week's 226,000, the US Labor Department reported on Thursday. The four-week moving average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, rose by 1,000 to 230,000.
About 1.67 million people were receiving jobless aid the week ended November 26, up 62,000 from the week before. That's the most in 10 months, but still historically low.
RBI signs bilateral swap agreement with Maldives Monetary Authority
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has signed a Currency Swap Agreement with the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) under the SAARC Currency Swap Framework.
This is to provide swap support as a backstop line of funding for short-term foreign exchange liquidity requirements. This agreement will enable the MMA to make drawals in multiple tranches up to a maximum of USD 200 million from the RBI.
FII and DII data
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have net sold shares worth Rs 1,131.67 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth Rs 772.29 crore on December 8, as per provisional data available on the NSE.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE
The National Stock Exchange has retained GNFC and Indiabulls Housing Finance, under its F&O ban list for December 9. 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
