Asian markets are not exuding confidence for now. Nikkei has lost over a percent while China's CSI300 is marginally lower.
Fridays have usually been cheerful for the indices despite the subdued sentiment which prevails broadly. The Indian equity market breached a three-day losing streak and ended higher after a bounce in crude oil prices. We won’t debate on why higher crude prices should benefit but that seems to be the only plausible explanation for recent upmove. The budget session of Parliament Budget session of Parliament will begin from February 23. The Union Budget will be presented on February 29. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expects that the opposition parties will "see reason" and the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is held up in Rajya Sabha.
The indices are set to open on a flat note. Investors may choose to take risks at lower levels given the speed at which stocks come tumbling down intra-day. The next hurdle for the Nifty is seen at 7570 hurdle which support should set in around the 7480 levels. Results will continue to flow on tap today are Lupin, Bosch, Cadila Healthcare, Carborundum, Cox & Kings, Deepak Nitrite, Divi’s Lab, Eicher Motors, Elgi Equipments, Radico Khaitan and Tata Power among others.
Asian markets are not exuding confidence for now. Nikkei has lost over a percent while China's CSI300 is marginally lower. Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up 0.7% while South Korea's Kospi is flat. US stock indices finished with modest gains on Thursday after swaying in and out of the positive territory throughout the session. Dow gained 0.5%, S&P 500 rose 0.2% and Nasdaq was flat up 0.1%. Crude-oil futures reversed early gains and settled 1.7% lower at $31.72 per barrel. Initial jobless claims rose to 285,000 in the last week of January but remained at a low level. Any number below 300,000 is considered a sign of a strong labor market.
The productivity of US businesses fell at a 3% annual pace in the fourth quarter, marking the biggest decline since the start of 2014. Orders for goods manufactured in US factories slid 2.9% in December, the Commerce Department said. Investors will be closely watching Friday’s non-farm payrolls data for clue about the state of the US economy.
With increase in technology spending estimated by global technology analysts, NASSCOM expects the double digit growth story to continue in FY2017. The IT-BPM industry export revenue is expected to grow by 10-12 per cent in FY2017 reaching revenues of USD 119-121 billion.
Releasing the guidelines on steel overcapacity cut, China has decided to cut crude steel capacity by 100 - 150 million tonnes within next 5 years. The Chinese cabinet said today that the steel prices have tumbled to multi-year lows and debt of Chinese steel companies have shot up. This move aims at combating this situation.
The Minister of State for Finance, Jayant Sinha, stressed upon the priority to provide the universal pension security including income security, health and life insurance to the people at large. He said that he believed in the philosophy to empower Indians with tools and knowledge to take ownership of their own retirement.
Honda is recalling an additional 2.2 million Honda and Acura vehicles, according to reports. Report says that the recall is a big chunk of the 5 million additional vehicles to be repaired for Takata inflator problems that U.S. safety regulators announced last month.
Gold futures advanced on Thursday, as sustained weakness in the US dollar and safe haven demand for the yellow metal lifted prices to their highest level since late October.
The net profit for the quarter stands at Rs. 106.7 crore as against loss of Rs.14 crore (YoY).
