Stock market indices open flat: Sensex down 41 points, Nifty below 17,250-mark

Stock market indices open flat: Sensex down 41 points, Nifty below 17,250-mark

FPJ Web DeskUpdated: Friday, December 17, 2021, 09:32 AM IST
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At the opening bell, stocks that were major gainers included Wipro, Infosys, TCS, HCL Technologies and Dr Reddy’s Laboratories. /Representational image |

The stock markets opened flat on December 17 reflecting mixed global cues. At 09:16 AM, the Sensex was down 41.45 points or 0.07 percent at 57859.69. The Nifty was down 10.70 points or 0.06 percent at 17,237.70. About 1076 shares have advanced, 786 shares declined, and 90 shares are unchanged.

At the opening bell, stocks that were major gainers included Wipro, Infosys, TCS, HCL Technologies and Dr Reddy’s Laboratories. Titan Company, Bajaj Finance, Tata Motors, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank.

Nifty snapped a four day losing streak on December 16 and closed minorly in the positive after a volatile session. At close Nifty was up 0.16 percent or 27 points at 17,248.

Nifty keeps facing selling pressure from 17,370-17,400 band over the last three days. Despite other markets sustaining most of their gains, Nifty failed to hold on to the opening gains. Advance decline ratio has again gone negative suggesting broad based profit taking amidst thin overall volumes. 17,380-17,185 is the band for the Nifty in the near term.

Asian stocks trade mixed

Asian stocks were mixed Friday following a decline in U.S. shares led by the technology sector, amid concerns over impact of tapering and geopolitical tensions following the U.S. sanctions on China.

US stocks end lower

US stocks ended lower Thursday, with big tech shares leading the way lower, as investors waded through a raft of economic data and weighed monetary policy moves by global central banks following the Federal Reserve’s decision a day earlier to more quickly wind down its asset purchases and pencil in three interest rate increases for 2022.

The Fed said industrial production rose 0.5 percent in November. IHS Markit said its US manufacturing “flash” purchasing managers index for December fell to 57.8 from 58.3 a month earlier, while the services PMI dropped to 57.5 from 58.

Bank of England hikes interest rates

The Bank of England on Thursday made a surprising decision, becoming the first major central bank to lift interest rates since pandemic began by raising its benchmark to 0.25 percent from 0.10 percent.

Meanwhile, the European Central Bank, also on Thursday, said it would further slow purchases of assets under its Pandemic Emergency Purchase Program, or PEPP, in the first quarter of next year and bring them to a halt in March. But the ECB softened the blow by planning to raise purchases under a separate, existing program in the second quarter, while ECB President Christine Lagarde reiterated that a rate increase in 2022 remained unlikely.

Norway's central bank hikes interest rates

Norway's central bank, which had hiked in September on the back of an economic rebound, went ahead with a further rise as expected and said more were likely to follow. The Swiss National Bank kept its rates locked at -0.75 percent.

Turkish lira at record low against dollar

The Turkish lira plunged as much as 5.6 percent to a record low of 15.689 against the dollar on Thursday after the central bank slashed its policy rate (by an expected 100 basis points (bps) to 14 percent) in line with an unorthodox economic program set out by President Tayyip Erdogan. Mexico's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by 50 basis points to 5.50 percent, seeking to keep price pressures in check with inflation running high. The increase was higher than expectations of a 25 bps hike.

US imposes trade restrictions on over 30 Chinese research institutes

The Biden administration said Thursday it imposed trade restrictions on more than 30 Chinese research institutes and entities over human rights violations and the alleged development of technologies, such as brain-control weapons, that undermine U.S. national security.

President Joe Biden signed a debt ceiling increase into law Thursday, ensuring the U.S. will not default on its debt for the first time ever.

The Bank of Japan is due to announce its monetary policy decision today and analysts say they do not expect any substantive changes.

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