Indian stock market: 7 key things that changed for market over weekend - Gift Nifty to dovish US Fed Chair Jerome Powell

Indian stock market: The domestic equity benchmark indices, Sensex and Nifty 50, are expected to open higher on Monday led by upbeat sentiment in the global markets on hopes of interest rate cuts.

Asian markets traded mixed, while the US stock market ended higher last week on increased expectations of monetary policy easing.

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell gave his strongest signal that the interest rate cuts are coming soon and expressed further confidence on imminent policy easing. “The time has come for policy to adjust,” and “the upside risks of inflation have diminished,” Powell said at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium.

Traders have fully priced in a Fed easing for next month, with a 64% chance of a 25-basis-point cut and about 36% chance of a bigger 50-bps reduction, according to the CME FedWatch tool, Reuters reported.

On Friday, the Indian stock market benchmark indices ended the rangebound session flat with a positive bias.

The Sensex gained 33.02 points, or 0.04%, to close at 81,086.21, while the Nifty 50 settled 11.65 points, or 0.05%, higher at 24,823.15.

“Markets are consolidating at higher levels. Overall we expect the market to witness a gradual uptick with stock-specific action,” said Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

In the last week of August, investors will watch out for the upcoming domestic and global macroeconomic data, India’s GDP data, flow of foreign funds, trends in crude oil prices, and other key global cues that will influence the Indian stock market.

Here are key global market cues for Sensex today:

Asian Markets

Asian markets traded mixed on Monday after dovish comments from US Fed Chair Jerome Powell and escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.09%, while the Topix declined 1.02%. South Korea’s Kospi rose 0.22% and the Kosdaq gained 0.19%. Hong Kong Hang Seng index futures indicated a higher opening.

Gift Nifty Today

Gift Nifty was trading around 24,916 level, a premium of nearly 60 points from the Nifty futures’ previous close, indicating a positive start for the Indian stock market indices.

Wall Street

US stock market ended higher on Friday after dovish remarks from the US Fed Chair Jerome Powell cemented expectations of interest rate cuts by the central bank in September.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 462.3 points, or 1.14%, to 41,175.08, while the S&P 500 rallied 63.97 points, or 1.15%, to 5,634.61. The Nasdaq Composite ended 258.44 points, or 1.47%, higher at 17,877.79.

Nvidia stock price surged 4.55%, Tesla shares spiked 4.6%, while Apple shares gained 1.03%. Workday shares jumped 12.5%, the biggest percentage gainer on the Nasdaq. Ross Stores share price rose 1.8%, while Intuit sagged 6.8%.

US Fed Chair at Jackson Hole

US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said in his speech at Jackson Hole Symposium in Wyoming that the time had come for interest rate cuts. “The time has come for policy to adjust. The direction of travel is clear, and the timing and pace of rate cuts will depend on incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks.”

Gold Prices

Gold prices rose on Monday, extending gains from the last session. Spot gold gained 0.2% to $2,516.09 per ounce, while US gold futures added 0.2% to $2,551.30.

Dollar

The dollar hovered near its lowest level in about thirteen months, while benchmark 10-year yields also slipped.

The dollar index - which measures the currency against a basket of six major peers, including the euro, sterling and yen - languished at 100.64, just off the 13-month low of 100.60 reached at the end of last week.

Oil Prices

Crude oil prices traded higher as the conflict in the Middle East escalated after an Israeli strike on Hezbollah targets in southern Lebanon.

Brent crude oil gained 0.70% to $79.57 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 0.74% to $75.38.

(With inputs from Reuters)

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