10 things you need to know before the opening bell on April 1

SUMMARY

The Indian market is likely to open higher as Asian stocks edged up after big tech rallied on Wall Street after President Joe Biden announced a multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure investment plan. The trend on SGX Nifty indicated a strong start for the broader index in India. The Nifty futures were trading 110.00 points or 0.75 percent higher at the 14,856.00 level on the Singaporean Exchange at 8:05 am.

By CNBC-TV18Apr 1, 2021 8:26:34 AM IST (Published)

1. Wall Street | The S&P 500 and Nasdaq rose on Wednesday, boosted by gains in technology shares, and the three major Wall Street indexes registered their fourth straight quarterly rise as investors looked forward to details of President Joe Biden's massive infrastructure plan. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 85.41 points, or 0.26 percent, to 32,981.55, the S&P 500 gained 14.34 points, or 0.36 percent, to 3,972.89 and the Nasdaq Composite added 201.48 points, or 1.54 percent, to 13,246.87.

2. Asian markets | Asian stocks were set to edge higher early on Thursday after big tech rallied on Wall Street and as President Joe Biden announced a multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure investment plan. Australian S&P/ASX 200 futures rose 0.28 percent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index futures rose 0.81 percent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.24 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares traded 0.19% higher.

3. Indian market on Wednesday | Indian equity indices ended over 1 percent lower on Wednesday dragged by heavy selling in private banks and IT stocks amid mixed global cues. The Sensex fell 627.43 points, or 1.25 percent to close at 49,509.15, while the Nifty ended 154.40 points, or 1.04 percent lower at 14,690.70. Broader markets outperformed the benchmark as the midcap and smallcap indices ended over 0.3 percent higher each. Among sectors, Nifty Private Bank Nifty IT and Nifty Financial Services declined, while gains were witnessed in PSU banks, FMCG, metals and pharma sectors.

4. Crude oil | Oil prices fell about 2 percent on Wednesday as fresh lockdowns in Europe stoked fuel consumption fears and a pessimistic demand outlook from OPEC and its allies ahead of their meeting to decide on production curbs. Brent crude for May, which expired on Wednesday, settled at $63.54 a barrel, down 60 cents, or 0.9 percent. The more active contract for June ended $1.43, or 2.2 percent, lower at $62.74. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures closed at $59.16 a barrel, losing $1.39, or 2.3 percent.

5. Rupee | The rupee closed higher by 26 paise at 73.12 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday and ended the fiscal on a strong note with a gain of over 3 per cent despite coronavirus-induced disruptions on the economic front. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 73.56 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 73.05 and a low of 73.58. It finally ended at 73.12 against the American currency, registering a rise of 26 paise over its previous closing. On Tuesday, the rupee had settled at 73.38 against the American currency.

6. Biden announces $2.3 trillion infrastructure package | President Joe Biden on Wednesday outlined a USD 2.3 trillion plan to re-engineer the nation's infrastructure over the next eight years in what he billed as a once-in-a-generation investment in America that would undo his predecessor's signature legislative achievement of giant tax cuts for corporations in the process.

7. Core sectors output contracts 4.6% in Feb | The output of eight core sectors declined by 4.6 percent in February, the steepest contraction in the last six months which experts said could drag the overall industrial production in the month into the negative territory. All the key segments, including coal, crude oil, natural gas, and refinery products, witnessed a decline in production, according to the official data released on Wednesday.

8. Govt pegs market borrowing at Rs 7.24 lakh cr for first half of FY22 | The government on Wednesday said it will borrow Rs 7.24 lakh crore in the first half of 2021-22 fiscal to meet resources to perk up the economy hit by the coronavirus pandemic. According to the Budget 2021-22, the government's gross borrowing was estimated at Rs 12.05 lakh crore in the financial year beginning April 1.

9. Retail inflation| The government on Wednesday asked the Reserve Bank to maintain retail inflation at 4 percent with a margin of 2 percent on either side for another five-year period ending March 2026. To control the price rise, the government in 2016 gave a mandate to the RBI to keep the retail inflation at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side for a five-year period ending March 31, 2021. “The inflation target for the period April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2026 under the Reserve Bank of India Act 1934 has been kept at the same level as was for previous 5 years,” Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj said.

10. India records current account deficit of 0.2% in December quarter | India's current account swung to a deficit for the first time in the current fiscal, with the gap coming at USD 1.7 billion or 0.2 percent of the GDP in the December quarter. In the current fiscal, as the pandemic impacted trade, the current account had been in surplus in the previous two quarters, at USD 15.1 billion and USD 19 billion, respectively, as per the data on balance of payments released by the RBI on Wednesday.