Stock Market LIVE Updates: GIFT Nifty signals higher open for India markets; Asia mixed, US declines

Stock Market LIVE Updates, Thursday, October 24, 2024: Indian benchmark equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 were trading on a muted note on Thursday.

  At 2 PM, the BSE Sensex was down 20 points, or 0.03 per cent, at 80,061, while the Nifty 50 was at 24,400, lower by 35 points, or 0.14 per cent.

In the afternoon, more than half the stocks out of the 30 on the BSE Sensex were trading in the green, with gains led by UltraTech Cement (up 2.3 per cent), followed by SBI, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank and Power Grid Corp., while loses were capped by Hindustan Unilever (down 6 per cent), Nestle India, Maruti Suzuki India, ITC, and Asian Paint.

  Half the stocks out of the 50 on the Nifty 50 were trading in the red. Gains were led by UltraTech Cement (up 2.78 per cent), followed by Grasim Indutries, Shriram Finance, SBI, and Mahindra & Mahindra, while loses were capped by Hindustan Unilever (down 6 per cent), followed by SBI Life, Nestle India, Hindalco Industries, and Bajaj Auto.

  Across sectors, the FMCG index was the top laggard, falling 2.84 per cent, followed by the Realty index which was down 1.10 per cent. Other sectoral indices trading in the red included Auto, Oil & Gas, Metal, Consumer Durables, Metal, IT and Media.

  In contrast, the PSU Bank index was the top sectoral gainer, climbing 1.19 per cent, followed by the Nifty Bank and Financial Services, which were up 0.66 per cent and 0.58 per cent, respectively. 

  The Pharma and Healthcare indices were also trading in the green.

  In the broader markets, meanwhile, the Nifty Smallcap 100 was ahead by 0.18 per cent, while the Nifty Midcap 100 was down 0.16 per cent.    

Indian benchmark equity indices BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 ended Wednesday’s choppy session to settle in the negative territory. The BSE Sensex shed 138.74 points or 0.17 per cent to settle at 80,081.98, while the Nifty 50 dropped 36.60 points or 0.15 per cent to end at 24,435.50.

IT stocks outperformed in an otherwise weak market, with the Nifty IT index ending higher by 2.38 per cent. 

Among other sectoral indices, Financial Services, FMCG, Media, Consumer Durables, and PSU Bank managed to settle in the green, while Auto, Pharma, Healthcare, and OMCs ended with loses on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, markets in the Asia-Pacific region were mixed on Thursday morning after the overnight decline in US stocks on on Wall Street.

South Korea’s Kospi was down 0.37 per cent after the country’s third-quarter GDP growth came in at 0.1 per cent quarter on quarter, missing Reuters’ estimates of 0.5 per cent growth, and following a 0.2 per cent decline in the second quarter.

The small-cap Kosdaq declined 1.08 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.48 per cent, while the Topix was up marginally. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.14 per cent.

In mainland China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.54 per cent, and the CSI300 was down 0.56 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.77 per cent. 

That apart, global stocks edged lower on Wednesday amid tepid trading ahead of the US election, while gold prices retreated from record highs, dragged down by gains in the US dollar.

Investors are also rethinking how much the Federal Reserve might need to cut interest rates after the most recent US economic data pointed to an economy that continues to expand and create jobs.

On Wall Street, all the three main indices finished lower, driven by losses in consumer discretionary, technology and communication services stocks. 

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.96 per cent to 42,514.95, the S&P 500 fell 0.92 per cent to 5,797.42 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.60 per cent to 18,276.65.

The MSCI All-World index lost 0.79 per cent, while in Europe, the STOXX 600 finished down 0.30 per cent.

The chances of Republican candidate Donald Trump beating Democratic candidate Kamala Harris have recently edged higher on betting websites, though opinion polls show the race to the White House remains too tight to call.

The prospect of another Trump presidency has been in focus for investors, as his policies include tariffs and restrictions on undocumented immigration, among other measures, which are expected to push up inflation.

Gold retreated after hitting record highs amid gains in the US dollar. Demand for safe-haven gold is partly driven by US election worries and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and Europe.

Bullion, which has risen 33 per cent this year, was last down 1.19 per cent at $2,715.62 an ounce. US gold futures fell 0.1 per cent to $2,741.50 an ounce. It hit a record high of $2,758.37 earlier in the session.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, rose 0.26 per cent to 104.37.

Oil prices fell after data showed US crude inventories rose by more than expected even as refining activity rebounded.

Brent crude futures settled at $74.96 per barrel, down 1.42 per cent. US West Texas Intermediate crude futures settled down 1.35 per cent at $70.77. 

(With inputs from Reuters.)