With F&O expiry just a day away, further short covering could set in. Nifty Nov futures managed to end at a slight premium to the spot Nifty price
The possibilities are numerous once we decide to act and not react.
After reaction, its time for some action now. The market appears to have made a hasty exit just as the RBI tone signaled the beginning of the end of easy monetary policy. A few surprisingly hawkish steps and comments unveiled in the RBI’s mid-year policy review set the cat among the pigeons. A hike in SLR, some tightening of lending norms and hike in inflation expectation sent a clear message that the soft corner shown during the economic upheaval will no longer be available. But, the market may have overreacted. What made the matters worse were persistent weakness in global markets and a couple of less enthusiastic numbers.
So, expect a bounce back though the start may still be a nervous one due to mixed external trend. RIL will announce its results tomorrow and numbers could match expectations as there is usually some treasury gain to bank on. With F&O expiry just a day away, further short covering could set in. Nifty Nov futures managed to end at a slight premium to the spot Nifty price.
Results Today: ACC, Ambuja Cements, Anant Raj, Andhra Bank, BOB, BEML, Bombay Dyeing, Chennai Petro, Cipla, EIH, Essel Propac, GAIL, Gammon Infra, GNFC, HCL Tech, Hexaware, HPCL, Hotel Leela, India Cement, Ingersol Rand, Jain Irrigation, LMW, MRPL, Marico, Mercator Lines, Shree Cement, Sun Pharma, Sun TV, Tata Tea, Thomas Cook, Usha Martin and Zicom.
FIIs were net sellers in the cash segment on Tuesday at Rs5.49bn on a provisional basis. The local funds were net buyers of Rs1.42bn, according to figures published on the NSE's web site. In the F&O segment, the foreign funds were net sellers at Rs15.94bn. On Monday, the foreign funds were net buyers of Rs1.9bn in the cash segment. Their net investments in Indian stocks this year is above $14bn. Mutual Funds were net sellers at Rs3.61bn on Monday.
US stocks closed mixed on Tuesday with Dow Jones Industrial Average managing slim gains and the Nasdaq Composite finishing in the red. A rally in energy space and a surprise drop in consumer confidence provided a competitive backdrop to the day.
A better-than-expected housing market report and a strong response to the government's latest debt auction were also in the mix.
The Dow gained 14 points, or 0.1%, to 9,882.17. The S&P 500 index rose 3 points, or 0.3%, to 1,063.41. But the Nasdaq lost 26 points, or 1.2%, to 2,116.09.
Since peaking at rally highs a week ago, the Dow has lost 2.3%, the S&P 500 has lost 3.4% and the Nasdaq has lost 3.4% through Tuesday's close.
Although the S&P 500 is up 57% from the March bottom, when it hit a 12-year low, the broad average is still down 32% from its all-time high of October 2007.
Weakness in banks, techs, retailers and transportation stocks dragged down the Nasdaq and limited the rest of the market from moving much. A rally in heavily weighted Dow components Chevron, Exxon Mobil, DuPont and American Express kept the blue-chip measure afloat.
US stocks had tumbled on Monday, with the Dow dropping 100 points for the second day in the row. A spiking dollar hit commodity shares and other stocks that benefit from a weak US currency.
The dollar and commodity prices remained in focus Tuesday as well. But investors also looked to the economic news ahead of Thursday's highly anticipated gross domestic product (GDP) report.
Energy was the strongest sector on the day, as investors reacted to a smattering of financial reports and the impact of the US dollar.
European oil behemoth BP reported weaker quarterly earnings and revenue due to lower oil prices, but the results topped analysts' estimates. BP's US-traded shares rose 4%.
Valero Energy, the largest US oil refiner, reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss, with fuel demand suffering amid the sluggish economy. Shares fell 4.3%.
Nonetheless, a variety of energy stocks rallied, including Dow components Chevron and Exxon Mobil.
Raw commodity prices were higher as well, despite a mixed dollar. Typically a weak dollar boosts dollar-traded commodity prices and a strong dollar pressures prices.
Consumer sentiment took a plunge in October, according to a Conference Board report released after the start of trading. The Consumer Confidence index fell to 47.7 in October from a revised 53.4 in September, reflecting the impact of rising joblessness and shrinking household wealth. Economists thought the index would rise to 53.5.
The part of the index that measures how consumers rate the present economic situation fell to 20.7 in October from 23 in September. It was the lowest level since February 1983, when it stood at 17.5.
Home prices rose for the fourth month in a row in August, according to the S&P Case-Shiller Home Price index of the 20 largest metropolitan areas. Prices also showed the smallest year-over-year declines in nearly 2 years. Prices rose 1.2% in August after climbing 1.6% in July. Versus a year ago, prices were down 11.3%, but that was shy of the 11.9% drop economists were expecting.
With 230 companies, or 46%, of the S&P 500 having already reported results, profits are on track to have fallen 18.1% from a year ago, according to the latest from Thomson Reuters. Results have largely topped forecasts, with 80% of companies beating earnings' estimates, 6% meeting expectations and 13% missing forecasts.
The dollar gained versus the euro, after falling to a 14-month low last week. But the greenback fell versus the yen.
US light crude oil for December delivery rose 87 cents to settle at $79.55 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
COMEX gold for December delivery fell $7.40 to settle at $1,035.40 an ounce. Gold has surpassed records repeatedly this month due to the weak dollar and longer-term worries about inflation.
Treasury prices rallied, lowering the yield on the 10-year note to 3.47% from 3.55% late on Monday. Gains accelerated after the government saw strong demand for its sale of $44 billion in 2-year notes.
European stocks closed higher in a choppy session, as weaker-than-expected US consumer confidence data contrasted with better-than-expected results from oil giant BP. The pan-European Dow Jones Stoxx 600 index finished with a rise of 0.3% to 242.56.
The UK's FTSE 100 index rose 0.2% to 5,200.97, while the French CAC-40 index finished fractionally lower to 3,734.95 and Germany's DAX index declined 0.1% to 5,635.02.