Markets end lower in see-saw trade as RBI holds repo rate steady

Closing bell

The benchmark indices, the Sensex and Nifty, closed lower in topsy-turvy trade on Thursday after the Reserve Bank surprised with its decision to hold key policy rates.

At the closing bell, the 30-share BSE gauge Sensex was lower by 70.70 points or 0.17 per cent at 40,779.59. The index swung between losses and gains after the central bank kept the rates unchanged.

The 50-scrip NSE Nifty closed the day with a loss of 24.80 points or 0.21 per cent at 12,018.40.

On the Sensex chart, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, IndusInd Bank, HeroMoto Corp and Tata Motors were among the major laggards. On the other hand, TCS, ITC, L&T, Infosys and Tech Mahindra led the gains.

Sectorally, the metal index fell the most, followed by the basic materials and energy indices. Capital goods, IT and tech indices moved higher.

The RBI unexpectedly kept benchmark interest rates unchanged on concerns of headline inflation breaching its medium-term target.

After five consecutive cuts in interest rates this year, the six-member Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) headed by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das unanimously voted to hold the key repo rate at 5.15 per cent and reverse repo rate at 4.90 per cent.

Bankers and economists had widely expected the central bank to cut rates for a sixth time to support a slowing economy, whose growth rate slipped further to a six-year low of 4.5 per cent in the September quarter from 7 per cent a year back. - PTI

European shares steady on mixed trade signals

European shares steadied after stellar gains on Wednesday, as mixed signals on a US-China “phase-one” trade deal continued to discourage investors from making risky bets.

The pan-European STOXX 600 rose 0.3 per cent by 0814 GMT, mainly driven by the bond proxy utilities, healthcare and real estate sectors. The trade-sensitive German blue-chip index was flat. Click here to read in full the European markets report .

Asian markets inch up on flickering hopes of a trade deal

Japan's Nikkei shed 0.61 per cent. File Photo

Stock markets in Asia inched up on Thursday on the possibility that China and the US may soon seal a “phase one” deal to end their 17-month trade war, but conflicting messages from US President Donald Trump kept a lid on the advance.

European shares are set to follow with a slightly firmer open, with the pan-regional Euro Stoxx 50 futures and London's FTSE futures rising 0.1 per cent in early trade.

Hopes that an agreement would soon emerge stemmed from a Bloomberg report on Wednesday that the two sides were close to a “phase one” deal, and Trump's remarks that the talks were going ”very well” after he had earlier said it might take until late 2020 to reach an accord. Click here to read in full the Asian markets report .

Sensex, Nifty slip

The benchmark indices, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty, have shed their morning gains to trade flat to weaker in late session on Thursday.

The indices, which opened firm, slipped into the red after the RBI held the repo rate steady at 5.15 per cent.

The indices then bounced back to recoup most of their morning gains. They have since shed their gains to trade lower. The Sensex is flat at 40,855, while the Nifty is at 12,031, down 11 points.

The top gainers on the Sensex are TCS, L&T, ITC, Infosys and Tech Mahindra, while the laggards are Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, Tata Motors, HeroMotoCorp and IndusIndBank.

Sensex, Nifty stabilise

The Sensex and Nifty were back in positive territory after falling sharply following the RBI's decision to hold the repo rate steady at 5.15 per cent.

The Sensex was at 40,944, up 94 points or 0.23 per cent higher, while the Nifty was at 12,063, up 20 points or 0.17 per cent firmer.

The top gainers on the Sensex were L&T, TCS, ITC, Infosys and Tech Mahindra, while the laggards were Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Tata Steel, Tata Motors and HeroMotoCorp.

IndiGo stock falls nearly 5 per cent

Shares of InterGlobe Aviation , parent firm of IndiGo, fell nearly 5 per cent on Thursday after the airline designated the A320neo issue as one of the “revenue headwinds” of 2019-20.

The stock fell 4.47 per cent to trade at Rs 1,342.45 on the BSE. In early trade, it hit a low of Rs 1,337.50, down 4.66 per cent over its previous close. 

On the NSE, the stock saw a decline of 4.87 per cent to Rs 1,337.40. During the morning session, it lost as much as 4.89 per cent to Rs 1,337.05. 

With DGCA ordering IndiGo to replace all its A320neo aircraft with unmodified Pratt and Whitney (PW) engines by January 31, the airline on Wednesday designated this matter as one of the “revenue headwinds” of 2019-20, and said it is “likely to have an impact on future capacity”. - PTI

Rupee drops 8 paise as RBI leaves repo unchanged

The Indian rupee fell 8 paise to 71.61 against the US dollar in mid-session trade on Thursday after the Reserve Bank surprisingly left the key policy rate unchanged at 5.15 per cent.

The RBI maintained the status quo in its policy decision and decided to continue with its accommodative stance to support the economy. Click here to read in full the rupee report .

Sensex, Nifty sharply lower

The benchmark indices, the Sensex and Nifty, shed their morning gains to trade sharply lower at mid-session on Thursday.

The Sensex was trading flat at 40,852, while the Nifty dropped into the red at 12,031, down 11 points or 0.09 per cent lower.

The RBI in its bi-monthly monetary policy meeting has held the repo rate steady at 5.15 per cent. It has also maintained its accommodative stance.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS, which gained 1.33 per cent during the session, followed by Tech Mahindra, ITC, Reliance and ICICI Bank (which gained between 0.50-1 per cent).

The laggards were YES Bank (down 1.98 per cent), Sun Pharma (1.87 per cent), Bharti Airtel (1.80 per cent), Tata Steel (1.61 per cent) and Tata Motors (1.39 per cent).

PTI adds: In the fifth bi-monthly review of the policy, the central bank also revised GDP growth downwards to 5 per cent for 2019-20 from 6.1 per cent projected in its October policy.

After opening higher by 84.17 points at 40,934.46 in opening deals, the 30-share index pared all gains to turn negative after the policy announcement by the Reserve Bank of India.

Rate-sensitive banking stocks faced the heat, with the BSE bankex falling 0.36 per cent. THe BSE realty index also turned red.

The rupee was trading lower by 8 paise at 71.61 in afternoon session. Brent futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.32 per cent to USD 62.80 per barrel.

Will another rate cut by the RBI spur growth?

Amid expectations of another rate cut by the Monetary Policy Committee at the fifth bi-monthly monetary policy meet on Thursday, economists believe that it may not have the desired effect as both business and consumer sentiments are subdued. Click here to read more on how the RBI's monetary policy stance .

Rupee on slippery slope for at least a year, finds poll

The Indian rupee will not recover lost ground in the coming year, according to a  Reuters  poll of currency strategists who are more pessimistic than last month amid doubts over any kind of trade truce between the United States and China. Click here to read in full the report on rupee movement .

Rupee opens flat at 71.53 against $ ahead of RBI policy decision

The Indian rupee opened on a steady note at 71.53 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday ahead of the Reserve Bank of India’s monetary policy decision.

Forex traders said, the domestic unit was trading in a narrow range as investors are trading cautiously ahead of the RBI policy decision.

The RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is slated to announce its fifth bi-monthly policy decision for this fiscal later in the day. Click here to read in full the rupee report.

Sensex, Nifty hold firm

The Sensex and Nifty held firm in morning trade on Thursday. The Sensex was at 40,944, up 94 points or 0.23 per cent firmer, while the Nifty was at 12,062, up 19 points or 0.16 per cent firmer.

The top gainers on the Sensex were TCS, ICICI Bank, ITC, Tech Mahindra and Reliance, while the laggards were YES Bank, Sun Pharma, Bharti Airtel, Tata Motors and Tata Steel.

According to an agency report, the share market nudged higher in opening deals, helped by hopes of a rate cut by the Reserve Bank later in the day and the possibility of a trade deal between the US and China sooner than speculated.

The RBI will announce its monetary policy decision at 1145 hours, followed by a press conference.

The 30-share BSE Sensex was trading higher by 84.17 points at 40,934.46 in opening deals; while the broader 50-share NSE Nifty was up by 21.95 points at 12,065.15.

The Asian markets were slightly higher on hopes that the US and China might be able to sign a preliminary trade deal, though uncertainties still remained intact due to almost daily shifts in prospects for early talks.

On Wednesday, the Sensex closed at 40,850.29, up by 174.84 points or 0.43 per cent over the previous close.

The Nifty rose by 43.10 points or 0.36 per cent to end at 12,037.30.

Meanwhile, the rupee was trading flat at 71.53 in opening deals.

Foreign investors sold equities worth Rs 781.06 crore on Wednesday, exchange data showed. (with inputs from PTI)

Dollar firm as 'headline ping-pong' revives trade optimism

The dollar and export-oriented currencies found support on Thursday as upbeat trade comments from US President Donald Trump cheered the market, while New Zealand's softer-than-expected banking reforms pushed the kiwi to a four-month high.

The flight to safety seen on Wednesday reversed after Trump said trade talks with China were going “very well,” a day after floating the idea that a deal might have to wait until after the 2020 presidential election. Click here to read in full the forex report .

Daily Rupee call: Buy on declines with stop-loss at 71.7

The rupee (INR) strengthened on Wednesday and it broke out of the resistance at 71.6 against the dollar (USD), opening the door for further appreciation. After registering an intraday low of 71.81 yesterday, the domestic currency gained throughout the session and closed at 71.53.

Since the rupee has broken out of the range, it will most likely appreciate. On the upside, it will face resistance at 71.4 and 71.2. However, if the breakout fails and the rupee declines, 71.6 will act as a strong support, below which the support is at 71.88. Click here to read in full the daily rupee call .

Oil steadies after price jump

Oil prices edged lower in muted trading on Thursday ahead of the start of OPEC meetings later in the day, steadying after the previous session's steep gains on a sharp drop in US crude inventories and expectations of more output cuts.

Brent crude futures dipped 10 cents, or 0.2 per cent, to $62.90 a barrel by 0112 GMT. Brent surged 3.6 per cent on Wednesday. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 22 cents, or 0.4 per cent, to $58.21 a barrel. They settled up 4.2 per cent on Wednesday. Click here to read in full the oil markets report .

Asian markets inch up on trade outlook but markets remain wary

Asian stocks edged up on Thursday on signs the United States and China were on track for a preliminary trade deal, though optimism was tempered by the almost daily shifts in prospects for defusing the damaging tariff war now in its second year. Click here to read in full the Asian markets report .

Wall Street bounces back on renewed trade optimism

Wall Street rebounded on Wednesday as investor optimism got a boost from US President Donald Trump's remarks that talks with China on an interim trade deal were going “very well.”

All three major US stock indexes snapped a three-day losing streak with a broad-based rally, led by financial, healthcare and tariff-sensitive technology stocks.

Trump's comments supported a Bloomberg report that the world's two largest economies were closer to agreeing how many tariffs would be rolled back in a “phase one” trade deal. Click here to read in full the US markets report .

Opening bell

The benchmark indices, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty, opened in the green on Thursday.

The Sensex was at 40,920, up 69 points or 0.17 per cent firmer, while the Nifty was at 12,068, up 25 points or 0.21 per cent firmer.

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