10 things you need to know before the opening bell on April 29

SUMMARY

The Indian market is likely to open higher on Thursday tracking gains in Asian peers after the US Federal Reserve decided to leave short-term interest rates anchored near zero. At 8:05 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 192 points or 1.30 percent higher at 15,039, indicating a positive start for the broader markets in India.

By CNBCTV18.comApr 29, 2021 8:35:13 AM IST (Published)

1. Wall Street: Major US stock indexes ended slightly lower on Wall Street Wednesday after the Federal Reserve left its key interest rate unchanged near zero, even as it noted recent improvement in the economy. The S&P 500 ended down just 0.1 percent after some earlier gains evaporated while DJIA and Nasdaq rose 0.5 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

2. Asian stocks:Stocks in Asia-Pacific mostly rose in Thursday morning trade, as investors react to the U.S.Federal Reserve’sdecision tokeep its easy money policy in place.South Korea’sKospi gained 0.37 percent while the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia climbed 0.32 percent. Mainland Chinese stocks were mixed, with theShanghai composite down 0.13 percent and the Shenzhen component advanced 0.146 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.67 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.54 percent higher.

3. D-Street:The Indian equity market ended over 1.5 percent higher on Wednesday led by banks, auto and financial stocks. The Sensex rallied 789.70 points, or 1.61 percent to 49,733.84, while the Nifty closed 211.50 points, or 1.44 percent higher at 14,864.55.Gains in midcap and smallcap indices supported the rally.

4. Oil: Oil prices extended gains on Thursday after rising 1 percent the previous session, as bullish forecasts on recovering demand this summer offset concerns of rising COVID-19 cases in India, Japan and Brazil. Brent crude for June edged up 0.1 percent to $67.35 a barrel by 0104 GMT and US WTI was at $63.98 a barrel, up 0.2 percent.

5. Gold: Gold prices plunged by Rs 505 to Rs 46,518 per 10 gram in the national capital on Wednesday following a fall in the global metal prices. In-tandem with weak gold prices, silver also declined by Rs 828 to Rs 67,312 per kg from Rs 68,140 per kg in the previous trade. In the international market, gold was quoting lower at USD 1,769 per ounce and silver was flat at USD 26.02 per ounce.

6. Rupee: The rupee rose by 30 paise to close at a nearly two-week high of 74.36 against the US dollar on Wednesday, extending its gains for a third day on the back of a strong rally in domestic equities. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 74.49 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 74.29 and a low of 74.50.

7. Bitcoin: Tesla Inc said on Wednesday that the fair market value of bitcoin the electric carmaker held as of March 31 was $2.48 billion, suggesting it could stand to make around $1 billion dollars out of the investment were it to cash in the digital currency.

8. Coronavirus: Adar Poonawalla on Wednesday said that Serum Institute of India (SII) has decided to reduce the price of Covishield for states by 25 percent to Rs 300. Read more

9. SEBI: Markets regulator Sebi on Tuesday said it has decided that a part of the compensation of the key employees of the Asset Management Companies (AMCs) will be paid in the form of units of the schemes. Read more

10. Fed Interest rates: The Federal Reserve is keeping its ultra-low interest rate policies in place, a sign that it wants to see more evidence of a strengthening economic recovery before it would consider easing its support. Read more