SGX Nifty up 15 points; here's what changed for market while you were sleeping

RBI’s money policy outcome scheduled for later in the day and weekly options expiry are set to sway market sentiment today. For now, Asian cues are mixed, hinting at a cautious start for the domestic stocks.

Here’s breaking down the pre-market actions.

STATE OF THE MARKETS
SGX Nifty signals positive start
Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 16 points, or 0.14 per cent higher at 11,132, in signs that Dalal Street was headed for a positive start on Thursday.

Tech view: Nifty50 forms bearish candle
Nifty50 on Wednesday could not stage follow-up buying after Tuesday’s gains, and ended flat. Selling pressure emerged as the index entered the resistance area in the 11,200-240 zone. Analysts said a decisive close above this range is a must for the index to resume the uptrend. A fall below the 11,900-850 range could trigger a steep fall, they said.

Asian shares mixed in early trade
Japan's Nikkei 225 index was down 0.25 per cent or 56.11 points at 22,458.74 in early trade, while the broader Topix index slipped 0.33 percent or 5.08 points to 1,549.63. Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 0.39 pe rcent, or 98.90 points, to 25,201.44. China's Shanghai Composite index edged up 0.09 per cent, or 3,20 points, to 3,380.76.

Oil prices struggle to hold 5-month high
Oil prices were unchanged on Thursday, struggling to hold onto five-month highs reached in the previous session, as fuel demand worries caused by a second wave of coronavirus infections outweighed declines in the US dollar. US WTI crude futures were down 3 cents, or 0.1 per cent, at $42.16 a barrel, while Brent crude futures rose 6 cents to $45.23.

US stocks rise amid earnings, mixed data
US stocks rallied on Wednesday as investors pored through a batch of earnings reports and economic data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 373.05 points, or 1.39 per cent, to close at 27,201.52. The S&P 500 was up 21.26 points, or 0.64 per cent, to 3,327.77. The Nasdaq Composite Index increased 57.23 points, or 0.52 per cent, to 10,998.40.

Q1 results today
Vodafone Idea, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), Lupin, Adani Power, Adani Enterprises, Bayer Cropscience, HCL Infosystems, JK Tyre, Lemontree Hotels and Whirlpool of India are among companies that are slated to announce their June quarter earnings on Thursday.

DIIs sell Rs 426 cr worth of stocks
Net-net, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were sellers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 60.18 crore, data available with NSE suggested. DIIs were net sellers to the tune of Rs 425.98 crore, data suggests.

MONEY MARKETS
Rupee: The rupee rose by 10 paise to close at 74.94 against the US dollar on Wednesday tracking positive domestic equities and weak US currency.

10-year bonds: India 10-year bond yield fell 0.12 per cent to 5.84 after trading in 5.82-5.84 range.

Call rates: The overnight call money rate weighted average stood at 3.39 per cent, according to RBI data. It moved in a range of 1.80-4.10 per cent.

DATA/EVENTS TO WATCH

• Earnings: Adani Enterprise I Adani Power I HPCL I Voda Idea I IHC I JK Tyre I LemonTree I Lupin I Torrent Power
• BoE Interest Rate Decision (11.30 am)
• RBI Interest Rate Decision (11.45 am)
• Brazil June Unemployment Rate (05.30 pm)
• US Initial Jobless Claims Aug 1 (06.00 pm)

MACROS
RBI policy outcome today
Governor Shaktikanta Das has a tough task at hands today. He needs to solve the growth-inflation dilemma and also take decisions on whether the country needs a moratorium extension for the second time. As some banks urged, the RBI Governor could also look into a different approach and announce a one-time loan restructuring to fix non-performing asset (NPA) problems that may soon creep in, as suggested by the RBI Financial Stability report, in the coming quarters.

Liquidity glut fuels bullion surge… As central banks across the world continue to infuse money into the system to insulate their economies from the impact of a Covid-induced slowdown, investors globally have stepped up their safe-haven play by betting increasingly on the yellow metal. The sharp decline in demand for jewellery in the world’s two largest markets — China and India — was more than offset by the jump in demand by gold exchange-traded funds. Along with gold, the demand for silver as an investment avenue is also on the ascent and prices are nearing record levels globally

RBI probes bank-brokerage loan deals… RBI has initiated a probe into funding arrangements between some private banks and stock brokers after a lender’s refusal to pay up as part of a share-settlement process led to a legal dispute. The central bank has written to Sebi, seeking details about socalled fixed deposit receipts, an instrument that brokers place with the clearing members of trades as collateral.

Services activity shrinks in July… India’s services sector activity shrank for the fifth consecutive month in July even though the pace of contraction slowed compared to June, a clear indication of the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns taking a toll on the services sector. July witnessed drops in new business and job cuts, according to a private survey on Wednesday. The IHS Markit Services Business Activity Index was 34.2 in July against 33.7 in June. A reading above 50 indicates expansion and below that shows contraction in activity.

NHAI eyes InvIT to monetise assets… The National Highways Authority of India is eyeing monetisation of its operating assets through the infrastructure investment trust (InvIT) and special purpose vehicle routes, after the toll operate transfer (TOT) model has seen a setback amid uncertainty around traffic visibility. “TOT as a model may not find takers going ahead, given the uncertainty of traffic,” a senior government official told ET.

Tyagi term extended as Sebi chief… The government on Wednesday extended the tenure of Ajay Tyagi as Sebi chairman by 18 months till February 2022. The extension comes at a time when the economy and the markets are passing through a tough phase, mainly induced by the coronavirus pandemic. This is the second extension for the Sebi chief. Earlier this year, Tyagi was given a six-month extension

ED set to chargesheet Kochhars… The Enforcement Directorate is likely to soon file its first chargesheet in a case of alleged money laundering involving former ICICI Bank chief Chanda Kochhar and her businessman husband Deepak. The agency had registered the case in February, days after CBI booked the Kochhars and Videocon Group managing director Venugopal Dhoot over alleged quid pro quo in loan transactions between ICICI Bank and the conglomerate when Kochhar was the bank’s chief executive. CBI had accused her of allegedly receiving "illegal gratification" through her husband from Videocon for sanctioning a term loan of Rs 300 crore.

Tata ridicules Mistry ‘oppression’ charge… Tata Trusts chairman Ratan Tata contended that it was an 'unfathomable irony' when shareholders bemoaned their situation and regarded themselves as ‘oppressed,’ despite the value of the holding having increased 2,100 times. This was in response to an affidavit filed by Cyrus Investments in the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, the Tata group challenged the NCLAT order, arguing that it has granted relief not sought by the petitioner.