SGX Nifty up 80 points; here's what changed for market while you were sleeping

A positive start awaits Dalal Street on Friday when the market resumes trade after a one-day holiday on account of Republic Day. A firm finish for US stocks in overnight trade is expected to support sentiments back after a sharp selloff seen in the last session. That said, investors could avoid fresh bets ahead of the Union Budget and US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy action next week.

Here's breaking down the pre-market actions:

STATE OF THE MARKETS

SGX Nifty 50 signals a positive
Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 82.50 points or 0.46% higher at 18,036, signalling a positive start for Dalal Street.

• Tech View: By closing below the 18000-mark on Wednesday, Nifty 50 has formed a long bearish candle on the daily charts. If the index stays below 18018 level, then further downside towards 17850-17777 levels can be seen. In case of a rebound, the index could face resistance at 18018-18081 levels.

• India VIX: In the wake of a selloff in equities, the ‘fear gauge’ surged 7.3% to settle at 14.66 points on Wednesday.

US stocks end in the green
Wall Street ended a choppy session higher on Thursday as investors grappled with an onslaught of economic data and a string of mixed corporate earnings, all while eyeing the clock as it ticks down toward next week's Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting. While all three major U.S. stock indexes advanced, megacap momentum stocks, buoyed by Tesla Inc's earnings beat and upbeat sales forecast, helped put the Nasdaq in the lead.

• Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.61%
• S&P 500 gained 1.10%
• Nasdaq Composite added 1.76%

Asian stocks rise
Stocks in Asia gained Friday, following US equities higher after a rally in tech shares helped investors shake off mixed economic data that suggested a path to a soft landing, but the risk of recession persists. An Asian equity gauge was headed for a fifth week of gains and its highest close since April.

• Japan’s Topix index was little changed
• South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.6%
• Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 0.2%
• Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.3%

Dollar drops vs yen
The U.S. dollar dropped against the yen on Friday as traders bet a hawkish pivot from the Bank of Japan (BOJ) was still in the offing. The dollar index - which measures the currency against six major peers, including the euro, yen and British pound - edged 0.04% lower to 101.70, putting it on course for a 0.28% decline this week. That would be its third straight weekly slide.

FII/DII action
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) on Wednesday net sold Indian shares worth a whopping Rs 2,394 crore, provisional data showed. DIIs on the other hand, net bought shares to the tune of Rs 1,378.5 crore.

Stocks in F&O ban today
Nil. Securities in the ban period under the F&O segment include companies in which the security has crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit.

Forex Watch
The Indian unit ended higher against the dollar on Wednesday, but pared most of the intraday gains.The rupee settled at 81.59 a dollar compared with 81.72 in the previous session. It had touched a high of 81.48 a dollar intraday.

Earnings Today
70 companies to detail December quarter earnings. Bajaj Finance, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, and Vedanta among the major ones.

FPO Watch
Adani Enterprises’ Rs 20,000 crore follow-on public offer (FPO) will open for subscription on Friday. The price band for the FPO is Rs 3,112-3,276 a share.

The company on Wednesday raised close to Rs 6,000 crore from over 30 institutional investors, including prominent names such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Al Mehwar Investments, Citigroup Global, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, LIC, HDFC Life Insurance, and SBI Pension Fund.

Macro news

• The US Labor Department report showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped for the week ended Jan 21

• The US Commerce Department said the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) expanded at an annualized rate of 2.9% in the fourth quarter, above expectations of a 2.6% rise.

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