Indian stock market: 10 key things that changed for market overnight - Gift Nifty, US PMI, jobless claims to gold prices

Indian stock market: The equity market benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty 50, are expected to open lower on Friday, following mixed global market cues, as investors remain cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell’s speech at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium.

Asian markets traded mixed, while the US stock market ended lower overnight, with all three benchmark Wall Street indices facing losses.

On Thursday, the Indian stock market ended higher, with the benchmark indices extending rally for the sixth consecutive session.

The Sensex gained 142.87 points, or 0.17%, to close at 82,000.71, while the Nifty 50 settled 33.20 points, or 0.13%, higher at 25,083.75.

“We expect the Indian market to remain firm, backed by optimism around GST reforms and an improved pace of corporate earnings growth,” said Siddhartha Khemka - Head Of Research, Wealth Management, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Here are key global market cues for Sensex today:

Asian Markets

Asian markets traded mixed on Friday ahead of US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the central bank’s annual Jackson Hole Economic Symposium.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.06%, while the Topix gained 0.37%. South Korea’s Kospi rallied 1% and the Kosdaq jumped 0.94%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures indicated a higher opening.

Gift Nifty Today

Gift Nifty was trading around 25,095 level, a discount of nearly 27 points from the Nifty futures’ previous close, indicating a muted start for the Indian stock market indices.

Wall Street

US stock market ended lower on Thursday as investors feared potentially hawkish remarks by the Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 152.81 points, or 0.34%, to 44,785.50, while the S&P 500 fell 25.61 points, or 0.40%, to 6,370.17. The Nasdaq Composite closed 72.54 points, or 0.34%, lower at 21,100.31.

Nvidia share price fell 0.24%, Meta shares declined 1.15%, Amazon.com stock price dropped 0.83% and Advanced Micro Devices fell 0.90%. Tesla stock price slipped 1.17%, Walmart shares tumbled 4.5%, and Coty shares plummeted 21.4%.

US PMI

US business activity picked up pace in August, led by a resurgent manufacturing sector. S&P Global’s flash US Composite PMI Output Index, which tracks the manufacturing and services sectors, increased to 55.4 this month, the highest level since December, from 55.1 in July.

US Jobless Claims

The number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits rose by the most in about three months last week. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits climbed 11,000 - the largest increase since late May - to a seasonally adjusted 235,000 for the week ended August 16. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 225,000 claims for the latest week.

US Existing Home Sales

Sales of previously owned US homes ticked unexpectedly higher in July. Home sales rose 2.0% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.01 million units from 3.93 million in June. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast home resales would be essentially unchanged from June at 3.92 million units. Sales edged up 0.8% on a YoY basis.

Japan Inflation

Japan’s core inflation slowed for a second straight month in July but stayed above the central bank’s 2% target. The nationwide core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes fresh food items, rose 3.1% in July from a year earlier, smaller than the 3.3% increase in June.

Gold Prices

Gold prices held steady ahead of Jerome Powell’s speech at the annual Jackson Hole symposium, Reuters reported. Spot gold price was steady at $3,337.12 per ounce, while US gold futures for December delivery were unchanged at $3,380.30.

Dollar

The US dollar was steady, poised for a strong weekly performance. The dollar index, which measures the US currency against six rivals, was at 98.61, on course for a 0.7% rise in the week, snapping its two-week losing streak, Reuters reported. The yen fetched 148.45 per dollar, the euro last bought $1.1613, down 0.8% for the week, while sterling was steady at $1.3416, down nearly 1% for the week.

Crude Oil Prices

Crude oil prices fell. Brent crude oil fell 0.25% to $67.50 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures declined 0.24% to $63.37.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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