Stock market today
:
BSE Sensex
and Nifty50, the
Indian equity benchmark indices
, started Thursday on a flat note. BSE Sensex was around 74,200 and
Nifty50
near 22,575. At 9:20 AM, BSE Sensex was trading at 74,219.56, down 1.50 points and Nifty50 was at 22,589.90, down 8 points.
On Wednesday, domestic stock markets experienced sideways trading throughout the session, ultimately closing with slight gains.
Siddhartha Khemka, Head of Retail Research at Motilal Oswal, noted that investors will now shift their focus to Nvidia’s earnings report, the US Federal Reserve meeting minutes, and UK inflation data, all of which are set to be released later in the day. Khemka expressed an overall expectation for positive market sentiment to persist.
From a technical perspective, Om Mehra of SAMCO Securities suggests that if the upward momentum continues, the index could potentially reach 22,750 and even surpass its all-time high of 22,794.70.
In the United States, stocks experienced a decline on Wednesday as investors analyzed the minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent meeting. However, Nvidia’s shares rose by approximately 6% after the close, following the semiconductor bellwether’s stronger-than-expected revenue forecast. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.51%, the S&P 500 fell 0.27%, and the Nasdaq Composite was down 0.18%.
Across Asian markets, stocks slipped at the open, with shares in Japan, South Korea, and Australia falling alongside Hong Kong equity futures. S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% as of 9:04 a.m. Tokyo time, while Hang Seng futures fell 0.7%. Japan’s Topix rose 0.1%, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.5%, and Euro Stoxx 50 futures fell 0.4%.
Oil prices continued to ease for the fourth consecutive day on Thursday, driven by concerns that U.S. borrowing costs could be raised again if inflation surges, potentially impacting oil demand. Brent crude futures fell 27 cents, or 0.3%, to $81.63 a barrel at 0004 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) futures were down 35 cents, or 0.5%, at $77.14.
The dollar remained near a one-week high on Thursday following its best day this month against its major peers. This came after the minutes of the last Federal Reserve meeting revealed a willingness among some officials to raise interest rates.
Several stocks are currently in the F&O ban period, including Vodafone Idea, Biocon, ZEE, Balrampur Chini Mills, Metropolis, IEX, Nalco, PEL, PNB, Hindustan Copper, India Cements, Bandhan Bank, and AB Capital. These securities have crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) were net sellers on Wednesday, offloading shares worth Rs 686 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought shares worth Rs 962 crore. The rupee rose 2 paise to settle at 83.29 against the US dollar on Wednesday, supported by softening crude oil prices.
The net short position of FIIs increased from Rs 2.11 lakh crore on Tuesday to Rs 2.19 lakh crore on Wednesday.
Several companies, including ITC, IndiGo, Honasa Consumer, and Tata Investment, are set to announce their fourth-quarter earnings on Thursday.
