Benchmark Indices are expected to open on a flat note as suggested by trends on SGX Nifty. The Nifty futures were trading around 17,243.50 level on the Singaporean Exchange at 7:40 AM.
Mohit Nigam, Head-PMS, Hem Securities said, "On technical front, it is very critical for Nifty to sustain above 17,100-17,200 levels for a few sessions which would ultimately lead the index to 17,500 levels in near term. Immediate support and resistance in Nifty 50 are 17,000 and 17,400 respectively. Bank Nifty immediate support and resistance are 34,500 and 35,500 respectively."
Indian markets could open flat in line with largely rangebound Asian markets today and despite mixed US markets on Wednesday, said Deepak Jasani, Head-Retail, HDFC Securities.
Nifty broke the two-day winning streak on December 29 amidst low volumes. At close, Nifty was down 0.11 percent or 20 points at 17,214. Advances outnumbered the declines for the third day on the trot even as volumes remain on the lower side. This reflects the lower presence of institutional players due to which traders are having a field day.
Nifty found resistance on the downward sloping trend line adjoining previous swing highs on the daily chart. 50 day EMA has also been acting as a hurdle for the Nifty. It faces resistance from the 17,285-17,298 band. Nifty has got strong support at the upgap level of 17,112.
Asian markets flat in early trade
Asian markets are also trading flattish in the early Thursday trade as the spread of Omicron clouded what is the last trading day of the year for many exchanges around the globe, while oil was close to finishing 2021 with gains of more than 50 percent. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.33 percent, after six sessions of gains, following volatile US trade, Reuters said. There were losses in Hong Kong, down 0.99 percent, and hurt by declines in mainland tech stocks, while Chinese blue chips shed 1.4 percent.
Chinese blue chips have also lost 6 percent led by big falls in techs as Beijing tightened restrictions on the sector. Japan's Nikkei slipped 0.7 percent on Thursday, which left it with a modest gain of 4.6 percent for the year and some way from a three-decade top reached in September. Tokyo is shut on Friday.
US markets close in green
Major US stock indexes swept to record closes Wednesday, except for the Nasdaq Composite Index, which finished slightly lower as longer-dated Treasury yields climbed to one-month highs. The Dow has now risen six straight trading days, marking the longest streak of gains since a seven-session run from March 5 to March 15 this year.
Dow Jones Industrial Average closed in green yesterday inching towards its all time high. It edged toward an all-time high on strong US retail sales, Reuters said. The Dow has risen six straight trading days, marking the longest streak of gains since a seven-session run from March 5 to March 15 of this year. However, the S&P 500 the Nasdaq Composite edged lower.
The Dow Jones rose 109.75 points, or 0.3 percent, to 36,507.96; the S&P 500 gained 7.72 points, or 0.16 percent, at 4,794.07; and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 5.87 points, or 0.04 percent to 15,775.85.
European markets were mixed with UK markets closing in green while German and French Indices closing in slight red.
US trade deficit
The US trade deficit in goods mushroomed to the widest ever in November rising by 17.5% to $97.8 billion from $83.2 billion in October. That exceeds the previous record deficit set in September of $97 billion. Imports rose by 4.7 percent with industrial supplies leading the way with an increase of $5.7 billion to $63.2 billion, followed by consumer goods rising by $2.9 billion to just shy of $67 billion as retailers rushed to fill store shelves ahead of Christmas. Both were record highs. Goods exports, meanwhile, declined 2.1 percent, with weakness across the board outside of a 4.3 percent, increase in food exports.
There was some positive economic data from South Korea where a 5.1 percent, surge in November industrial output could signal an easing in global supply bottlenecks.
Stocks to watch out for
Some stock specific actions can be witnessed today (Thursday) in stocks such as Spice Jet (Company’s cargo unit SpiceXpress signed a MoU with Pifore to develop electric cargo planes), Varun Beverages (incorporated a new entity 'Varun Beverages RDC SAS' in the Democratic Republic of Congo to carry on the business of manufacturing, selling, trading and distribution of carbonated and non-carbonated beverages), Sharika Enterprises (Won Rs 1.74 crore order for Smart City Project from Power Grid Corp).
Crude oil up
Brent crude delivery was last up 0.38%, at $79.24 a barrel. US crude was last up 0.88 percent, at $76.65. US crude stocks, gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, while US oil production rose to the highest since May 2020.
Fuel prices unchanged
Fuel prices remain unchanged across metros. After the Delhi government reduced the value-added tax on petrol from 30 percent to 19.40 percent, fuel prices have been lower in the national captial. On Thursday, petrol prices in Delhi stood at Rs 95.41 and diesel at Rs 86.67 per litre respectively.
In Mumbai, petrol is retailed at Rs 109.98 per litre, while diesel is being sold at Rs 94.14 per litre. Among the metro cities, fuel rates are still the highest in the financial capital.
Diesel and petrol prices also remained static in Kolkata at Rs 89.79 and Rs 104.67. In Chennai too, they remained unchanged at Rs 91.43 and Rs 101.40.
Dollar index nears lowest in a month
The dollar and yen were at the low end of their recent ranges in thin holiday trading on Thursday, having fallen overnight as investors favoured riskier currencies along with equities, Reuters said.
The euro was at $1.1352 in early Asian trading, after gaining 0.35 percent and touching a one-month high the day before. The sterling was at 1.3500, its highest since November 19 after a 0.44 percent overnight gain.
This left the dollar index, which measures the greenback against major peers, at 95.862, languishing near its lowest in a month. But with many traders away ahead of the year-end, analysts cautioned against reading too much into the moves.
(With inputs from Agencies)
