Market Live Update
The SGX Nifty is set to open marginally higher on Wednesday, with a gain of 60 points, indicating a positive start for the broader index. In the US markets, S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures experienced slight declines of 0.19 percent and 0.39 percent respectively, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures remained relatively unchanged. However, during Tuesday's trading session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average managed to close 0.63 percent higher, marking its first positive session in seven days. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also saw notable gains of over 1 percent each, driven by a resurgence in tech stocks following the previous week's selloff.
European markets closed cautiously higher after spending most of the session in negative territory. Investors closely monitored comments from central bankers at the ECB Forum in Sintra. The pan-European Stoxx 600 ended the day with a provisional increase of 0.09 percent, breaking a streak of six consecutive negative sessions. The banking sector led gains with a rise of 1 percent, while health-care stocks declined by 1.12 percent. Fintech company Wise emerged as the top performer, surging over 16 percent after reporting impressive full-year results, including significant gross profit and customer growth. The FTSE closed 0.11 percent higher at 7461 points, while the DAX closed 0.21 percent higher at 15,846 points.
In Asia-Pacific markets, stocks rose as investors awaited May inflation figures from Australia and China's industrial profit data for May. The S&P/ASX 200 in Australia climbed 0.71 percent in early trade, with economists predicting a slight easing in the country's inflation rate compared to the previous month. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rebounded by 1 percent after three consecutive days of losses, while the Topix surged by 0.9 percent. South Korea's Kospi traded near the flatline, and the Kosdaq saw a modest gain of 0.27 percent. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is also expected to extend its gains after experiencing an almost 2 percent increase on Tuesday.
Oil prices faced a decline of over 2 percent on Tuesday due to indications that central banks may continue with interest rate hikes. Investors also awaited data concerning US fuel consumption during the peak summer driving season. Brent crude futures settled at $72.26 a barrel, down 2.6 percent, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) futures dropped 2.4 percent to $67.70. Both contracts have been trading within a $10 range since early May, and market analysts highlighted the influence of changing expectations for interest rates on price movements.
In the currency market, the Dollar index traded slightly higher in futures at 102.53, while the value of one dollar hovered around Rs 81.99. Gold prices experienced a slip on Tuesday following strong US economic readings. Spot gold fell 0.6 percent to $1,911.53 per ounce, and US gold futures settled 0.5 percent lower at $1,923.80. Market participants positioned themselves ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's speech and awaited further data that could provide insights into future interest rate hikes.
According to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange, foreign institutional investors (FII) bought shares worth Rs 2,024.05 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) sold shares worth Rs 1,991.35 crore on June 27.
