India stock market: 6 things that changed for market overnight - Gift Nifty to rising crude oil prices

India Stock Market: The Indian stock market indices, Sensex and Nifty, are expected to open on a flat note Tuesday tracking mixed global cues.

The Asian markets traded mixed, while the US stocks ended marginally higher overnight as investors looked ahead to key economic data.

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Investors await the decision of Bank of Japan policy meeting wherein members are likely to debate whether economic conditions are falling into place for the bank to begin unwinding ultra-loose monetary settings.

None of the economists polled by Reuters expect the central bank to end its negative interest rate policy on Tuesday with most projecting such an action to happen next year.

Meanwhile, the domestic equity indices ended lower on Monday as investors seem to book profits after markets set a new high last week.

The Sensex declined 168.66 points, or 0.24%, to close at 71,315.09, while the Nifty 50 settled 38.00 points, or 0.18%, lower at 21,418.65.

“We remain bullish on the market given the robust domestic economic data, healthy corporate earnings, and strong FII flows. However, given the recent strong rally, bouts of volatility can’t be ruled out. Apart from the BoJ policy meet, European CPI data and China’s trade balance would be important events to track on Tuesday,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

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Here are key global market cues for Sensex today:

Asian Markets

Asian markets traded mixed on Tuesday ahead of the Bank of Japan’s interest rate decision and its stance on yield curve control policy.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was flat and just below a four-month high.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 traded marginally higher, while the Topix fell 0.26%. South Korea’s Kospi eased and the Kosdaq gained 0.67%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures pointed to a weaker open.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.57%.

Gift Nifty

Gift Nifty was trading around 21,464.50 level as compared to Nifty futures’ previous close of 21,466.00, indicating a flat start for the Indian benchmark indices.

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US stock market

The US stock market indices ended higher on Monday as investors looked ahead for crucial economic data during the week, while optimism prevails over expectations of interest rate cuts from the US Federal Reserve in the coming year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was flat at 37,306.02, while the S&P 500 gained 21.37 points, or 0.45%, to 4,740.56. The Nasdaq Composite ended 90.89 points, or 0.61%, higher at 14,904.81.

Among stocks, United States Steel shares surged 26.1%, Apple shares fell 0.9%, while VF Corp declined 7.8%.

Fed officials on rate-cuts

Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee warned that the central bank has not pre-committed to cutting rates anytime soon, and the jump in market expectations that it will do so is at odds with how the US central bank functions, Reuters reported.

Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said financial markets had got “a little bit ahead” of the central bank with respect to the timing and extent of interest rate cuts.

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Oil prices gain

Crude oil prices traded near its highest close in two weeks on increasing supply concerns as more companies shun the Red Sea after a rise in attacks on vessels along the key shipping conduit.

Brent crude oil prices rose 0.35% to $78.22 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 0.21% to $72.62.

Nippon Steel to acquire United States Steel

Japan’s Nippon Steel has announced it would buy United States Steel in a $14.9 billion deal including debt. Shares of United States Steel jumped 26.1% to a more than 12-year high after the announcement, while Nippon Steel shares sank nearly 5% early on Tuesday.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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