SGX Nifty down 46 points: Asian stocks fell, dollar eased, crude prices rose, Q4 earnings & more

Domestic benchmark indices are likely to open lower on Thursday tracking the negative cues from the global peers. US Stocks settled mixed in the overnight trade, whereas Asian markets were down ahead in the early trade amid the lacklustre action. Back home, action is likely to seen in the result bound counters ahead of F&O expiry for the April series. Here's what you should know before the opening bell:

Nifty outlook
Nifty may soon surpass the sturdy wall around 17,900 to challenge the next cluster of resistance around 18,000-18,200, said Sameet Chavan of Angel One. For the session, 17,750 followed by 17,700 is seen as a strong support zone and 17,850-17,900 range is seen as resistance level for the index.

F&O expiry today

Chavan said it’s a monthly expiry day and, thus, some volatility cannot be ruled out. Traders, he said,  are advised to keep a note of all important levels and should trade accordingly.v

“Throughout this week, the real action was visible outside the index and mostly stocks from the broader end of the spectrum kept market participants engrossed all the time. This is likely to continue as we move forward from here and hence, the key is to identify such themes when they are in their nascent stage,” he said.

SGX Nifty signals a negative start
Nifty futures on the Singapore Exchange traded 46 points, or 0.26 per cent, lower at 17,868, hinting at a negative start for the domestic market on Thursday.

Asian shares fall in early trade
Asian Stocks were trading mostly lower as they fed off US earnings, banking sector woes, debt ceiling developments and geopolitical events for direction. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.25 per cent. Japan's Nikkei dropped 0.27 per cent; Australia's ASX 200 tanked 0.49 per cent; New Zealand's DJ shed 0.14 per cent; China's Shanghai rose 0.28 per cent; Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.11 per cent and Korea's Kospi declined 0.04 per cent.

Brent at $78 a barrel
Oil prices rose on Thursday, paring earlier losses that were fuelled by US recession fear and increased Russian oil exports dulling the impact of OPEC production cuts. Brent crude was trading at $78.04 a barrel, up 35 cents, or 0.45 per cent, at 0039 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate crude was at $74.51 a barrel, adding 21 cents, or 0.28 per cent.

Euro hits one-year high against dollar
The euro hovered near a one-year high versus the dollar on Thursday, as Europe's resilient economy contrasted with banking contagion risks in the United States, the debt ceiling standoff and a potential recession. The dollar index was little changed at 101.41 Europe's single currency Euro ticked up 0.05 per cent to $1.10415. The dollar was little changed at 133.63 yen.

Wall Street stocks settle mixed
US stocks wavered to a mixed close on Wednesday as tech strength boosted the Nasdaq, while weak economic data and ongoing wrangling in Washington over the debt ceiling weighed on cyclicals and the dollar. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 228.96 points, or 0.68 per cent, to 33,301.87, the S&P 500 lost 15.64 points, or 0.38 per cent, to 4,055.99 and the Nasdaq Composite rose 55.19 points, or 0.47 per cent to 11,584.35.

Q4 earnings today
Hindustan Unilever, Axis Bank, Bajaj Finserv, Wipro, LTI MindTree, Tech Mahindra, Bajaj Holdings & Investments, Shriram Finance, Trent, Indian Hotels company, Mphasis, ACC, Embassy Office Parks RIET, Cofoge, Laurus Labs, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, Welspun India, Usha Martin, Glenmark Lifescience and Surya Roshni are among the companies that will announce their earnings for the March 2023 quarter.

Stocks in F&O ban
Two stocks- Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals (GNFC) and Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL)- have been put under F&O ban by National Stock Exchange (NSE) for Thursday, April 27. Derivative contracts in a security are banned when it crosses 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 1,257 crore
Provisional data available with NSE suggest that FPIs turned net buyers of domestic stocks to the tune of Rs 1,257.48 crore on Wednesday. However, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) turned net sellers of Indian equities to the tune of Rs 227.88 crore.

Rupee rises 21 paise against dollar
The rupee appreciated 21 paise to close at 81.74 against the US dollar on Wednesday, tracking the weakness of the American currency in the overseas market and gains in Asian peers. Forex traders said a positive trend in domestic equities also supported the local unit.

Note: With inputs from PTI, Reuters and other agencies  

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