SGX Nifty up 42 points: Asian markets, dollar movement, Q3 earnings, FPI flows & more

Domestic stock indices are likely open higher on Thursday, thanks to positive global cues. US stocks settled higher overnight while Asian stocks registered solid gains in early trading session. All eyes would be on Nestle India’s December quarter results scheduled for later in the day. Here's what you should know before the opening bell:

Nifty outlook
Nifty witnessed a breakout of triangle pattern on the lower time frame. Two consecutive bullish candles on the daily chart indicate the bulls are back in action. The index also closed above its 9- and 21-EMA, which is positive for the short term, said Rohan Patil, Technical Analyst, SAMCO Securities.

"Nifty’s technical landscape looks bullish and the benchmark should aim to sustain above the 18,000 mark. The immediate cap for the index is seen at 18,200 level and the level of 17,900 will act as instant support," he said.

SGX Nifty signals a positive start
Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange quoted 42 points, or 0.23 per cent, higher at 18,062.50, hinting at a positive start for the domestic market on Thursday.

Asian shares open mostly lower
Asian shares rose sharply on Thursday morning, tracking overnight jump in US stocks. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.96 per cent. Japan's Nikkei jumped 0.73 per cent; Australia's ASX 200 jumped 0.77 per cent; New Zealand's DJ gained 1.01 per cent; China's Shanghai added 0.41 per cent; Hong Kong's Hang Seng surged 1.21 per cent; and Korea’s Kospi soared 1.73per cent.

Oil prices edge higher
Oil prices angled upward in early Asian trade on Thursday, as the market shrugged off a giant US crude inventory build and the International Energy Agency boosted its demand outlook. Brent crude futures rose 26 cents to $85.64 per barrel by 0131 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained 34 cents to $78.93.

Dollar up after US retail sales data
The dollar advanced on Thursday after strong U.S. retail sales data underpinned the resilience of the world's largest economy, cementing the case that the Federal Reserve still has further to go in tightening rates. The US dollar index last 0.07 per cent higher at 103.87 and the yen rose marginally to 134.07 per dollar. The euro was little changed at $1.0687, while the sterling fell 0.19 per cent to $1.2015.

US stocks settle higher
Wall Street's three major indices settled higher overnight after US retail sales data for January rose by the most in nearly two years, suggesting a resilient economy. The Dow Jones Industrial Average index rose 38.78 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 34,128.05; the S&P500 index gained 11.47 points, or 0.28 per cent, to 4,147.60. The Nasdaq Composite index added 110.45 points, or 0.92 per cent, to 12,070.59.

Quarterly Results
Two companies - Nestle India and Schaeffler India- will announce their earnings for the December quarter. Both the companies follow the January-December period as financial years.

Stocks in F&O ban
Four stocks- Ambuja Cements, Indiabulls Housing Finance, Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL)- are retained under F&O ban by National Stock Exchange (NSE) for Thursday, February 16. Derivative contracts in a security are banned when it crosses 95 per cent of the market-wide position limit (MWPL). No new positions can be created in the derivative contracts of said security. This prohibition is lifted when the open interest in the stock drops below 80 per cent of the MWPL across exchanges.

FPIs buy shares worth Rs 432 crore
Provisional data available with NSE suggests FPIs turned net buyers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 432.15 on Wednesday. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) also turned buyers of equities to the tune of Rs 516.64 crore.

Rupee drops 7 paise against dollar
The rupee pared most of its initial losses to close down by 5 paise at 82.83 against the US currency on Wednesday on lower trade deficit data for the month of January and FII inflows. Forex traders said a stronger American currency in the overseas markets capped the appreciation bias.

Note: With inputs from PTI, Reuters and other agencies

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