10 things you need to know before the opening bell on December 10

SUMMARY

The Indian market is expected to remain cautious on Tuesday, following global markets, which traded lower as investors refrained from making major bets ahead of the next round of US tariffs on Chinese imports. The market participants also await CPI inflation data, which is due this week. The SGX Nifty, an indicator of the opening for the Nifty and the Sensex, was trading 3 points or 0.03 percent lower at 11,961.50, at 6:55 am, indicating a flat start for the domestic market.

By Mousumi Paul Dec 10, 2019 7:51:50 AM IST (Updated)

1. Asia: Asian equity markets were a tad lower on Tuesday as investors refrained from making major bets before Dec. 15, when the next round of US tariffs on Chinese imports is due to take effect. A Chinese Commerce Ministry official said on Monday that Beijing hopes to make a trade deal with Washington as soon as possible before new US tariffs are due to kick in this weekend. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down just 0.04 percent as the Asian trading day began on Tuesday. Australian shares were also 0.04 percent lower, while Japan's Nikkei lost 0.23 percent.

2. US: US stocks pulled back on Monday from near-record levels, as Apple and healthcare shares fell and investors braced for a busy week of political and economic news, including a potential turning point in the US-China trade dispute. Investor hopes of at least an initial US-China agreement have helped push major stock indexes to record highs, with the benchmark S&P 500 hovering about 0.5% below its all-time high. On Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 105.46 points, or 0.38 percent, to 27,909.6, the S&P 500 lost 9.94 points, or 0.32 percent, to 3,135.97 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 34.70 points, or 0.4 percent, to 8,621.83.

3. Markets At Close On Monday: Indian shares ended with minor gains on Monday amid lingering growth concerns and sustained foreign fund outflows. The benchmark 30-share S&P BSE Sensex added over 42 points, or 0.10 percent, to settle at 40,487 at the close. The broader 50-share NSE Nifty50 also gained 16 points, or 0.13 percent, to settle at 11,937.50. Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors bought Rs 459 crore in the cash market while the domestic institutional investors bought Rs 75 crore.

4. Crude Oil: Oil prices fell on Monday after data showed Chinese exports declined for a fourth straight month, sending jitters through a market already concerned about damage to global demand by the trade war between Washington and Beijing. Brent futures settled down 14 cents, or 0.22 percent, at $64.25 per barrel, after gaining about 3 percent last week on news that OPEC and its allies would deepen output cuts. West Texas Intermediate oil futures were down 17 cents, or 0.24 percent, at $59.02 a barrel, having risen about 7 percent last week on the prospects for lower production from OPEC+, which is made up of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and associated producers including Russia.

5. Currency: The rupee pared initial losses and settled 16 paise up at 71.04 against the US dollar on Monday amid softening crude oil prices and weakening of the greenback vis-a-vis other currencies overseas. Forex traders said the Indian rupee gained amid lower crude oil prices and the weaker dollar index. Moreover, positive developments on the US-China trade front also supported the local unit. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 71.24 against the US dollar. During the day, the domestic unit fluctuated between a high of 71.02 and a low of 71.27 and finally ended the day at 71.04 against the US dollar. On Friday, the rupee had settled at 71.20.

6. Currency In Circulation Rose As On March 2019: Currency in circulation peaked to over Rs 21 lakh crore at the end of March 2019, having dipped to a mere Rs 13 lakh crore at the end of fiscal 2016-17, Parliament was informed on Monday. The value of total notes in circulation as at end of March 2019 stood at Rs 21,109 billion, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha. In the preceding fiscal 2017-18 (fiscal ended March 2018), the notes in circulation were Rs 18,037 billion; while it stood at Rs 13,102 billion at the end of 2016-17. The value of total notes in circulation in the Indian economy stood at Rs 16,415 billion as of March 31, 2016.

Thakur was responding to a query about whether currency notes in circulation increased post-demonetization compared to pre-demonetization levels.

7. TeamLease Report On Rising Job Creation: India is expected to witness a marginal 7 per cent rise in job creation in the October-March period of this financial year, as subdued economic conditions have dampened employment outlook, a report said on Monday.

According to TeamLease's bi-annual Employment Outlook Report for H2FY19, economic reforms lifted the spirits for seven of the 19 sectors surveyed, while nine sectors reported a decrease in their outlook for the October-March period of this fiscal. India will witness a 7.12 percent increase in job creation in the current half-year (October-March, 2019-20), it said. Positive hiring outlook was reported in sectors like healthcare & pharmaceuticals, information technology, e-commerce and tech start-ups, educational services, KPO, power and energy, and logistics.

8. Mutual Funds' Asset Base Hits All-Time High: Mutual fund industry saw its assets base surpassing Rs 27 lakh crore-mark in November-end on the back of inflows in debt-oriented schemes including banking and PSU funds, which have a high allocation to highest rated bonds. The 44-player industry logged assets under management (AUM) of Rs 26.33 lakh crore in October-end, as compared to Rs 27.04 lakh crore by November end, representing a growth of 3 percent, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi). Mutual fund houses witnessed an overall inflow of Rs 54,419 crore last month as compared to Rs 1.33 lakh crore in October. (Stock Image)

9. Knight Frank On Property Price Correction: Finally, it seems the overall slowdown that has engulfed the economy has hit Mumbai, the nation's costliest property market, as well, with prices seen

falling marginally next year after remaining stable in 2019. The Mumbai real estate market is more known for its price stability despite over 2.21 lakh ready-to-move-in units remaining unsold as of September this year. In the past decade alone, the city has seen a 12.7 percent appreciation in prime residential properties. According to a study by property consultant Knight Frank, the average capital value of prime residential properties in the megapolis is Rs 64,775 per sqft, making it the most expensive city for buying luxury homes.

10. TRAI Seeks Industry's Views On Licensing Regime: Sector regulator Trai on Monday released a pre-consultation paper on unbundling of different elements of telecom like infrastructure, network, services, and application layers through differential licensing.

The move came after the Telecom Department sought the regulator's recommendation on the issue. The concept of unbundling of layers through differential licensing is enshrined in the new telecom policy, the 'National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP), 2018', Trai noted. "National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP), 2018, under its 'Propel India' mission, envisages one of the strategies as 'reforming the licensing and regulatory regime to catalyze investments and innovations and promote ease of doing business'," the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said in a statement.