The Indian markets ended Monday's session (April 11) on a flat note with a positive bias, thus extending the winning streak to a sixth straight day as gains in auto and IT shares offset losses in banking and FMCG stocks. The benchmark indices inched higher in the first half but profit-taking erased all the gains as the day progressed.

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Logging its longest gaining streak in four months, the BSE Sensex ended marginally up by 13.54 points or 0.02 per cent to 59,846.51 and NSE Nifty advanced 24.90 points or 0.14 per cent to finish at 17,624.05 on Monday.

Sensex and Nifty have risen by around 4 per cent in the six days of gains which is the longest winning run since the eight-day rally from November 22 to December 1 last year.

On the sectoral front, buying interest in auto, energy and IT capped the damage. Besides, recovery on the broader front kept the traders busy.

“We expect further consolidation in the index however the tone is likely to remain positive. Now, the upcoming results and global cues will largely dictate the trend. Meanwhile, we recommend focusing on stock-specific opportunities,” Ajit Mishra, VP of Technical Research at Religare Broking said.

Stay tuned to Zeebiz.com to find out what could impact your trade today. We have collated a list of the top 10 news points which could impact markets, companies, or the economy: 

Global Markets:

US stock markets clawed back from steep losses to a mixed close on Monday as investors digested Friday's employment report and prepared for an eventful week of inflation data and bank earnings.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) rose 101.23 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 33,586.52, the S&P 500 (.SPX) gained 4.09 points, or 0.10 per cent, to 4,109.11 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) dropped 3.60 points, or 0.03 per cent, to 12,084.36.

Asian Markets:

Asian markets were mixed in the early morning session on Tuesday tracking cues from US markets. 

Japan’s Nikkei was up over 1 per cent while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained around 1.5 per cent, followed by South Korea’s Kospi up nearly 1 per cent, and China’s Shanghai was down 0.2 per cent.

SGX Nifty:

Singapore Exchange (SGX) Nifty — an early indicator of the Nifty 50 index — was up 20 points or 0.12 per cent at 17,705 at this hour on Tuesday, suggesting a positive start ahead in the Indian share market today. It opened at 17,685 and touched a day’s high at 17,751 levels.

Rupee edges up 3 paise to 81.99 vs US dollar

The Indian rupee pared its early gains to close 3 paise higher at 81.99 against the US dollar on Monday as a resurgent greenback amid expectations of a Fed rate hike and firm crude oil prices weighed on the local unit.

The local unit finally settled at the day's low of 81.99, showing gains of 3 paise over the previous close. On Thursday, the rupee closed at 82.02 against the US currency. Equity and forex markets were closed on April 7 on account of Good Friday.

Dollar Index gains on Fed rate hike bets

The US dollar closed firm on Monday after Friday's solid jobs report boosted expectations for a US interest rate hike in May, while the Rupee weakened amid expectations of a Fed rate hike and firm crude oil prices weighed on the local unit.

US employers hired at a strong pace in March, adding 236,000 jobs that pushed unemployment down to 3.5 per cent, signalling labour market resilience that will keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise rates again next month.

The dollar index was last up 0.53 per cent against a basket of currencies at 102.55 after reaching 102.81, the highest since April 3.

Oil settles lower amid firm dollar

Crude oil prices settled lower on Monday, after rising for three straight weeks, as concern about further interest rate hikes that could curb demand balanced the prospect of a tighter market due to supply cuts from OPEC+ producers.

Brent crude settled down 96 cents, or 0.2%, at $84.58 a barrel while US West Texas Intermediate also fell 94, or 0.1%, to $79.74. Both benchmarks fell by more than $1 earlier in the session.

Skymet: ‘Below normal’ monsoon likely in India this year

India is likely to get "below normal" monsoon rains in 2023 with an increased likelihood of El Nino, which typically brings dry weather to Asia, private weather forecasting agency Skymet said on Monday.

"Likelihood of El Nino is increasing and its probability to become a dominant category during the monsoon is growing large. El Nino return may presage a weaker monsoon," Jatin Singh, managing director, Skymet said in a statement.

Monsoon rains in India are expected to be 94% of the long-term average, said Skymet, retaining its previous view of sub-par monsoon.

India's March fuel demand soars

India's fuel consumption jumped to a record high in March, data showed on Monday, fuelled by robust economic activity in the world's third-biggest oil consumer.

Consumption of fuel, a proxy for oil demand, rose by 5% from a year earlier to 4.83 million barrels per day (20.5 million tonnes), the highest recorded in data going back to 1998 from the Indian Oil Ministry's Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell.

Reliance, Adani among 49 bidders for Future Retail

Companies led by Indian billionaires Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani, a British retailer and global asset reconstruction firms are among the 49 entities in the fray to acquire Future Retail Ltd, the debt-laden Indian retailer said on Monday.

Reliance Retail, part of Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd (RELI.NS) as well as April Moon Retail Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Flemingo group and Gautam Adani-led Adani Airport Holdings, have submitted expressions of interest (EoIs), an exchange filing by Future Retail showed.

FII & DII Data:

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) remained net buyers for Rs 882.52 crore in the Indian markets while Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 351.50 crore on Monday, provisional data showed on the NSE.

(With inputs from PTI, Reuters and other agencies)