Stock Market Today: Top 10 things to know before the market opens

The benchmark Sensex and Nifty are likely to open gap-down on March 15 as trends in the GIFT Nifty indicate a weak start for the broader index with a loss of 132 points.

The benchmark indices ended on a positive note on March 14 and also erased some of the previous session losses with Nifty around 22,150 amid buying across the sectors.

At close, Sensex was up 335.39 points or 0.46 percent at 73,097.28 and Nifty was up 149 points or 0.68 percent at 22,146.70.

The pivot point calculator indicates that the Nifty 50 is likely to take immediate support at 21,980, followed by 21,912 and 21,802. On the higher side, the index may face resistance at 22,173, followed by 22,267 and 22,377 levels.

Stay tuned to Moneycontrol to find out what happens in the currency and equity markets today. We have collated a list of important headlines across news platforms, which could impact Indian as well as international markets.

GIFT Nifty

Trends in the GIFT Nifty indicate a gap-down opening for the broader index in India, with a loss of 132 points or 0.60 percent. The Nifty futures were trading around the 22,130.50 level.

Trade setup for today: Top 15 things to know before the opening bell

US Markets

US Treasury yields and the dollar climbed on Thursday, while a gauge of global stocks stumbled after a stronger than expected reading on US inflation cast doubt on the timing and magnitude of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 137.66 points, or 0.35 percent, to 38,905.66, the S&P 500 lost 14.83 points, or 0.29 percent, to 5,150.48 and the Nasdaq Composite  shed 49.24 points, or 0.30 percent, to 16,128.53.

Asian Markets

Asian markets were trading lower Friday after producer prices in the US grew at a faster than expected 0.6 percent in February.

Investors in Asia will be watching out for any news from Japan’s spring wage negotiations, with first estimates expected to come out later in the day.

US retail sales rebound in February; weekly jobless claims fall

US retail sales rebounded in February, driven by increases at auto dealerships and gasoline service stations, but consumer spending is slowing as households grapple with inflation and higher borrowing costs.

Retail sales rose 0.6 percent last month, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said on Thursday. Data for January was revised lower to show sales tumbling 1.1 percent instead of 0.8 percent as previously reported. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast retail sales, which are mostly goods and are not adjusted for inflation, rising 0.8 percent in February.

A separate report from the Labor Department on Thursday showed initial claims for state unemployment benefits fell 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 209,000 for the week ended March 9. Economists had forecast 218,000 claims in the latest week.

The number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, increased 17,000 to 1.811 million during the week ending March 2.

Morgan Stanley sees India investments growing faster than consumption in current cycle

Investments in India are set to grow faster than consumption for the next few years, according to Morgan Stanley economists, who see Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) rising to 36 percent of GDP in 2026-27.

"Real GFCF growth continued to hold strong at 10.5 percent in 4Q23 (October-December 2023), staying above the pre-Covid 2017-18 average of 9.6 percent," Morgan Stanley economists said in a report on March 13.

"On the flip side, private consumption (growth) is still relatively weak, tracking at just 3.5 percent in 4Q23, below the pre-Covid 2017-18 average of 6.5 percent," they added.

Fitch puts IIFL Finance on negative rating watch after RBI's action

Ratings agency Fitch on March 14 placed IIFL Finance on 'Rating Watch Negative' (RWN). The RWN follows a regulatory directive by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on March 4 where IIFL Finance was told to cease new gold-backed lending and related off-balance-sheet funding transactions.

The RWN indicates that the rating could remain unchanged or be downgraded upon the resolution of the Watch.

“The impact of the restrictions will depend on their duration and any spill-over effects on the rest of IIFL Finance's business. The RWN reflects downside risk to IIFL Finance's franchise, profitability and overall risk profile if regulatory restrictions on new gold-backed lending are prolonged,” Fitch said in a press release.

Dollar

The dollar inched higher on Thursday as investors waited for U.S. economic data, while bitcoin rose to a record high above $73,800.

The dollar index, which gauges the currency against six major peers, rose 0.1% to 102.83.

Gold Prices

Gold slid on Thursday after a larger than expected rise in February's U.S. producer price index (PPI) cooled expectations of early rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, boosting Treasury yields and the dollar.

Spot gold was down 0.6 percent at $2,161.10 per ounce as of 10:03 a.m. EDT (1403 GMT), moving away from a record peak of $2,194.99 hit on March 8. US gold futures also dipped 0.7 percent to $2,166.60.

Crude

Oil prices rose on Thursday as investors digested the International Energy Agency's (IEA) latest oil market report - in which it predicts a tighter market in 2024 - as well as fresh U.S. economic data.

Brent crude futures for May rose 70 cents, or 0.83 percent, to $84.73 a barrel. US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude for April was up 88 cents, or 1.1%, at $80.60.

FII and DII data

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) net sold shares worth Rs 1,356.29 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased Rs 139.47 crore worth of stocks on March 14, provisional data from the NSE showed.

Stock under F&O ban on NSE

The NSE has added BHEL to the F&O ban list for March 15, while retaining Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail, Manappuram Finance, National Aluminium Company, Piramal Enterprises, RBL Bank, SAIL, Tata Chemicals and Zee Entertainment Enterprises on the said list. Hindustan Copper was removed from the said ban list.

With inputs from Reuters and other agencies