Opening Bell:
Gift Nifty is down by 75.0 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market
Asian markets were trading mixed on Monday amid escalating tensions in the Middle East with Israel and Hezbollah trading strikes, while investors assessed dovish comments from US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Japanese Nikkei and TOPIX were down 0.96 and 0.99% whereas Hangseng was up 0.7% in the early morning trade
US stocks rallied on Friday as dovish remarks from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell solidified expectations that the central bank will cut its key policy rate in September. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 462.3 points, or 1.14%, to 41,175.08, the S&P 500 gained 63.97 points, or 1.15%, to 5,634.61 and the Nasdaq Composite added 258.44 points, or 1.47%, to 17,877.79.
Stocks News:
👉 Ashok Buildcon has emerged as the lowest bidder for a Rs 478 crore project awarded by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). The project involves designing and constructing an elevated road from Kalyan-Murbad Road to Badlapur Road, linking to Pune, running parallel to the Waldhuni River and crossing the Karjat-Kasara railway line, including a slip road.
👉 Tokai Rika Minda India, a joint venture between Tokai Rika Co., Japan, and Uno Minda, has inaugurated a new manufacturing plant in Neemrana, Rajasthan. With a production capacity of 3,84,022 units per month, the facility will produce smart keys, shift levers (shift by wire), seat belts, and other automotive components.
👉 Global index provider FTSE has announced changes to the FTSE All Cap & All World Indices in its Semi-Annual Index Review. A total of 13 stocks, including Bank of Maharashtra, Bharat Dynamics, Central Bank Of India, Cochin Shipyard, Endurance Technologies, Escorts Kubota, GE T&D India, Hitachi Energy India, Housing & Urban Development Corporation, IRB Infrastructure Developers, KEI Industries, Lloyds Metals and Energy, and Motilal Oswal Financial Services, will be added to the FTSE All World Index, effective September 23. Additionally, FTSE also announced 48 additions to the FTSE All Cap Index.
👉 Zydus’ subsidiary and Perfect Day Inc., a Temasek portfolio company, have signed an agreement for Perfect Day to sell its 50% stake in Sterling Biotech. As a result, Sterling Biotech will become a 50:50 joint venture with equal board representation. The partnership will focus on setting up a manufacturing facility to produce fermented animal-free protein for global markets.
👉 The foreign institutional investors (FIIs) extended their buying as they bought equities worth Rs 1,944 crore on August 23, while domestic institutional investors also bought equities worth Rs 2896 crore on the same day.
Domestic and International Events
- ONGC has commenced production from its fifth oil well in the KG-DWN-98/2 Cluster-2 asset, while also commissioning a gas export line from the offshore site to the onshore terminal. Oil production from this asset began in January, with 4 out of 13 wells now operational. Gas production is advancing as well, with 3 out of 7 wells currently online.
- Japan’s core inflation accelerated for the third consecutive month in July, with the nationwide core consumer price index (CPI) rising 2.7% year-on-year, up from 2.6% in June. However, the “core core” index, which excludes fresh food and energy costs, increased by 1.9%, down from 2.2% in June. This marked the first time it fell below the key 2% level since September 2022.
- The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits increased in the most recent week. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose by 4,000 to a seasonally adjusted 232,000 for the week ending August 17. This slightly exceeded economists’ expectations, who had forecast 230,000 claims, according to a Reuters poll.
- Oil prices extended gains on Monday on fears a major spillover in fighting from the Gaza conflict into the Middle East could disrupt regional oil supplies, while imminent U.S. interest rate cuts lifted the global economic and fuel demand outlook.
| EMERGING | LATEST | % 1D |
| Hang Seng | 17,612 | 1.2 % |
| Shanghai Composite | 2,854 | 0.2 % |
| DEVELOPED | LATEST | % 1D |
| Dow Jones | 41,175 | 1.1 % |
| DAX | 18,633 | 0.8 % |
| FTSE 100 | 8,327 | 0.5 % |
| Nikkei | 38,364 | 0.4 % |
| Straits Times | 3,388 | 0.4 % |
