Opening Bell:
Gift Nifty is up by 2.5 points in the early morning trade, indicating a positive opening for Indian stock market.
On Friday, Asian markets experienced upward momentum, following the overnight surge on Wall Street. Japan’s Nikkei 225 saw a 0.45% increase, and the Topix exhibited a rise of 0.13%. South Korea’s Kospi showed a strong rally, gaining 1.04%, while the Kosdaq also posted a significant jump of 1.16%. Additionally, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures suggested a positive opening.
On Thursday, the US stock market indices staged a recovery, concluding the day in positive territory. The Nasdaq, particularly driven by technology stocks, led the rally. This uptick was part of a broader market surge as investors eagerly anticipated several notable earnings reports and positioned themselves ahead of Friday’s employment report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 0.97%, reaching 38,519.84, the S&P 500 posted a 1.25% gain, closing at 4,906.19, and the Nasdaq recorded a 1.30% increase, finishing at 15,361.64.
Stocks News:
👉 Hero MotoCorp: The world’s largest two-wheeler maker recorded total sales at 4,33,598 units in January 2024, rising 21.6% over a year-ago period, with domestic sales increasing 20.5% on-year to 4.2 lakh units and exports surging 74.6% to 12,664 units for the quarter.
👉 Indian Hotels: Net profit was up 18.2% to ₹476.9 crore in Q3 from a year ago, revenue up 16.5%. Ebitda increased 22.6% yoy, while margin was 37.3% from 35.4% last year. Revenue for the quarter was led by 21% growth in room revenue. International RevPAR growth of 9% yoy due to 70% occupancy levels.
👉 RITES: The engineering services company has registered a 12.5% on-year decline in consolidated profit at Rs 128.8 crore for the third quarter of FY24, impacted by muted topline and weak operating performance. Revenue from operations increased by 0.8% to Rs 682.9 crore compared to the corresponding period of the last fiscal.
👉 Abbott India: The pharmaceutical company has registered a 26% on-year growth in net profit at Rs 311 crore for the quarter ended December FY24, backed by healthy operating numbers. Revenue from operations for the quarter grew by 8.7% to Rs 1,437 crore compared to the same period last year.
👉 Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 1,879.58 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 872.49 crore worth of stocks on February 1, provisional data from the NSE showed.
Domestic and International Events
- US manufacturing stabilized in January amid a rebound in new orders. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) said its manufacturing PMI increased to 49.1 last month from a slightly downwardly revised 47.1 in December. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index dipping to 47.0 from the previously reported 47.4.
- The Bank of England froze its key interest rate Thursday for a fourth meeting in a row, matching US Federal Reserve policy, as high inflation prevents cuts to borrowing costs. The BoE said in a statement it had left its rate at 5.25%, the highest level for 16 years, following a regular policy meeting.
- Oil prices plunged over 2% on Thursday amid unverified reports of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas and a U.S. refinery shutdown due to a power outage. A Qatari official denied an existing ceasefire but mentioned that Hamas responded positively to a proposal earlier in the week. Brent crude futures fell 2.5% to $78.70, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures dropped 2.7% to $73.82.
- Gold firmed nearer a one-month high on Thursday after data showed U.S. weekly jobless claims rose last week, while market focus shifted to the U.S. non-farm payrolls data for more cues on the Federal Reserve’s policy path. Spot gold was up 0.9% at $2,054.89 per ounce, hitting its highest level since January 3 earlier in the session. US gold futures settled 0.2% higher at $2071.1.
Key Equity Indices
| EMERGING | LATEST | % 1D |
| Hang Seng | 15,566 | 0.5 % |
| Shanghai Composite | 2,771 | (0.6) % |
| DEVELOPED | LATEST | % 1D |
| Dow Jones | 38,520 | 1.0 % |
| DAX | 16,859 | (0.3) % |
| FTSE 100 | 7,622 | (0.1) % |
| Nikkei | 36,011 | (0.8) % |
| Straits Times | 3,143 | (0.3) % |
