SGX Nifty down 44 points: Asian markets, crude oil prices, dollar movement, Nifty outlook & more

Domestic stock indices are to open lower on Thursday amid weak global cues. Asian stocks fell in early trade as US stocks settled sharply lower on hawkish commentary from the US Fed. Dollar took a beating while the US treasury yields jumped. Here's what you should know before the Opening Bell:

Nifty outlook
Nifty is near an all-time high above 18,887 level. The index is repeatedly making an attempt to see an upside breakout but failed succeed due to lack of strength, said Nagaraj Shetti, Technical Research Analyst, HDFC Securities. "The underlying trend of Nifty continues to be positive with range bound movement. A decisive move above 18,900 is expected to open the next upside towards 19,100-19,200 levels in the near term. The immediate support is placed at 18,730 level," he said.

SGX Nifty signals a negative start
Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 44 points, or 0.23 per cent, lower at 18,865, hinting at a negative start for the domestic market on Thursday.

Asian stocks fall in early trade
Asian shares dropped in the early trade on Thursday after the Fed Chair Jerome Powell's testimony before the US House Financial Services Committee. The US central bank remained hawkish and said that the fight with inflation is not over. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.06 per cent. Japan's Nikkei shed 0.24 per cent; China's Shanghai Composite tanked 1.31 per cent; Hong Kong's Hang Seng cracked 1.98 per cent. South Korea's Kospi gained 0.44 per cent.

Oil prices steady
Oil prices held on to most of the previous day's gains in early trade on Thursday as markets weighed an unexpected draw in US crude oil stocks against the prospect of weaker demand after the Federal Reserve chairman hinted at further interest rate hikes. Brent futures slipped 8 cents, or 0.1 per cent, to $77.04 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 5 cents, or 0.1 per cent, at $72.48 at 0015 GMT.

Dollar index drops to one-month low
The dollar languished near a one-month low against a basket of currencies on Thursday, after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell stuck to his usual messaging at his semi-annual testimony, offering little room for surprise. The US dollar index dropped about half-a-per cent and last stood at 102.05 in early Asia trade. The euro rose to a more than one-month high of $1.09925, while sterling rose 0.02 per cent to $1.2770. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar slipped 0.06 per cent to 141.82. The Chinese offshore yuan languished near Wednesday's seven-month trough and last bought 7.1798 per dollar.

Wall Street stocks settle lower
US stocks closed lower in overnight trade as the Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell's congressional testimony reinforced the central bank's objective to rein in inflation. All three major US stock indices notched their third straight daily declines, with megacap tech- and tech-related shares weighing most. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 102.35 points, or 0.3 per cent, to 33,951.52, the S&P 500 lost 23.02 points, or 0.52 per cent, to 4,365.69 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 165.10 points, or 1.21 per cent, to 13,502.20.

Powell stays hawkish
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the fight to lower inflation still has a 'long way' to go, while grains prices jumped on worries about crop shortfalls around the globe. After lifting interest rates by 5 percentage points since March 2022, the Fed this month took a breather to assess the effects of its actions. Investors broadly expect increases to resume at the Fed's July meeting.

Stocks in F&O ban
Six stocks- Punjab National Bank (PNB), Delta Corp, Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL), Hindustan Copper, Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL) and L&T Finance Holdings- has been put under the ban by National Stock Exchange (NSE) for Thursday, June 22. Derivative contracts in a security are banned when they  cross 95 per cent of the market-wide position limit (MWPL). No new positions can be created in the derivative contracts of said security. This prohibition is lifted when the open interest in the stock drops below 80 per cent of the MWPL across exchanges.

FPIs buy shares worth Rs 4,013 crore
Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs were net buyers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 4,013.10 crore on Wednesday. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned net buyers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 550.36 crore.

Rupee rises 8 paise against dollar
The rupee appreciated by 8 paise to close at 82.01 against the US dollar on Wednesday as a positive trend in domestic equities and easing crude oil prices supported investor sentiments. However, a strong dollar against major rivals overseas capped the rupee's gain, forex traders said.


Note: With inputs from PTI, Reuters and other agencies

Also read: Block deal: Delhivery shares in news as Carlyle may sell 2.53% stake today

Also read: Tata Steel, Tata Elxsi: 2 Tata group shares turn ex-dividend; stocks mixed 

Also read: Crayons Advertising shares hit upper circuit in early trade; here's why