Before Market Opens: 9 essential things to know at 9 am on April 9, 2024

U.S. stocks were essentially unchanged at the close of a choppy session on Monday, with a solar eclipse offering distraction ahead of crucial inflation data and the kick-off of first-quarter earnings season. All three major U.S. stock indexes were held in check by the highest benchmark U.S. Treasury yields since November in the wake of Friday’s blowout employment report. The S&P 500 lost 0.72 points, or 0.01%, to end at 5,203.62 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 7.21 points, or 0.03%, to 16,255.73. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 2.26 points, or 0.01%, to 38,906.30.

Industrial metals prices extended their gains on Tuesday with expectations of a worldwide manufacturing rebound, while Asian shares crept up a little more cautiously ahead of this week’s U.S. inflation data and a crucial European Central Bank meeting. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.2%. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.6%. Chinese stocks have not joined the party, though Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was 1.2% higher in early trade and China proxies such as the Antipodean currencies have been rallying.

Futures traders have reduced bets on how much the Federal Reserve will cut rates this year to the lowest level since October, LSEG data showed on Monday, amid evidence of continued strength in the U.S. economy. Fed funds futures contracts for December on Monday reflected expectations of around 60 basis points in rate cuts this year, compared to some 150 basis points that had been priced at the start of 2024. The prospect of a first 25 basis point cut in June stood at 49%, down from 57% a week ago, CME Group data showed on Monday.

On Monday, the Indian stock market benchmark indices closed at their fresh closing highs led by sectorial tailwinds and Q4 earnings growth expectations. The Sensex surged 494.28 points, or 0.67%, to end at 74,742.50, while the Nifty 50 settled 152.60 points, or 0.68%, higher at 22,666.30.

At 8:20 am, Gift Nifty was trading 59 points or 0.28 percent higher at 22,836, indicating a positive opening for the Indian markets.

Oil prices rose in early Asian trading after hopes diminished that negotiations between Israel and Hamas would lead to a ceasefire in Gaza and ease tension in the Middle East. Brent crude futures rose 40 cents to $90.78 a barrel by 0032 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose 35 cents to $86.78. A fresh round of Israel-Hamas ceasefire discussions in Cairo had ended a multi-session rally on Monday, leading Brent to its first decline in five sessions and WTI its first in seven on the prospect that geopolitical risks could ease.

Gold prices edged up on Tuesday, hovering slightly below a record high as investors awaited the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting minutes and key inflation data for cues on the timing and depth of interest rate cuts. Spot gold was up 0.1% at $2,340.09 per ounce as of 0051 GMT, after hitting a record high of $2,353.79 on Monday. U.S. gold futures edged 0.3% higher to $2,358.80 per ounce.

The rupee settled on a flat note on Monday at 83.31 against the US dollar, as the support from positive domestic equities was negated by the strength of the American currency in the overseas market. Forex traders said investor sentiments got a boost as crude oil prices retreated from their elevated levels, but the strength of the American currency in the overseas market weighed on the local unit and restricted the uptick. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.27 against the greenback. The unit hit an intra-day high of 83.23 and a low of 83.33. The local unit finally settled at 83.31 against the dollar, unchanged from its previous close.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth ₹684.68 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) bought ₹3,470.54 crore worth of stocks on April 8, provisional data from the NSE showed.

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Published: 09 Apr 2024, 08:40 AM IST