Sensex down 81 points

Yellen's comments, demonetisation pull Swn 81 poiensex donts

MUMBAI, NOV 18:  
The Sensex and Nifty were trading marginally down as US Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen has signalled an interest rate hike is imminent.
Sentiment at home was also hit by the government's move last week to remove high-value notes, disrupting daily lives of millions of Indians who live in a cash economy that is estimated to account for a fifth of the country's $2 trillion gross domestic product.

“There is a major liquidity issue in the domestic market due to the banknotes action and the volatility in the rupee because of rising US bond yields will likely continue for some time," said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Securities.

“The 8,000 level for Nifty is very important, but the risk of it falling below that mark will be there as the market will continue to remain cautious for a while amid domestic and global uncertainties.”

At 3.15 pm, the 30-share BSE index Sensex was down 80.65 points or 0.31 per cent at 26,146.97 and the 50-share NSE index Nifty was down 7.05 points or 0.09 per cent at 8,072.90.

Among BSE sectoral indices, oil & gas index gained the most by 1.4 per cent, power 1.23 per cent, healthcare 1.19 per cent and realty 1.08 per cent, while consumer durables index was down 1.26 per cent, metal 1.24 per cent, FMCG 1.13 per cent and banking 0.67 per cent.

Top five Sensex gainers were NTPC (+4.81%), Sun Pharma (+2.67%), Bharti Airtel (+2.13%), Hero MotoCorp (+1.98%) and Bajaj Auto (+1.36%), while the major losers were Tata Steel (-2.09%), ITC (-2.04%), GAIL (-1.54%), Asian Paints (-1.36%) and HDFC Bank (-1.34%).

Rupee slumps

The rupee fell as low as 68.15 per dollar, its weakest since June 24, compared with the previous close of 67.82.
The fall came with the dollar vaulting to a 13-1/2-year high against a basket of major currencies as US bond yields rose after Yellen said the central bank could raise interest rates “relatively soon''.

The Nifty IT index was in positive territory after three straight sessions of falls with HCL Technologies up 1.8 per cent.

A local IT sector lobby group cut its growth forecast for 2016-2017, citing local and global factors.

All the stocks of the Nifty pharma index rose with Sun Pharmaceutical Industries 2.6 per cent higher and Aurobindo Pharma up 2.3 per cent.

Meanwhile, the NSE Bank index was 0.32 per cent lower with ICICI Bank declining as much as 1.1 per cent and State Bank of India shedding up to 0.67 per cent.

Asian share markets weakened on Friday as rising US bond yields carried the dollar to a more than 13-1/2 year high against a basket of major currencies, fuelled by expectations that President-elect Donald Trump’s policies will lead to higher interest rates.

The post-election shift in expectations has left Asian stocks vulnerable to investors potentially rotating funds out of emerging markets to the United States.

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Nifty below 8,100 mark

Live Stock Market Updates - Nifty below 8,100 mark

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading up 0.26% at 12,031, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.32% at 11,802. Some buying activity is seen in oil & gas, power and energy sectors, while consumer durables, auto, banking, finance and telecom sectors are showing weakness on BSE.
The domestic market fluctuated between gains and losses as extended decline in consumer durables and select auto stocks countered a rally in energy producers. The Nifty50 opened below the 8,100 mark.

At 9:30 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex is trading at 26,159 down 69 points, while NSE Nifty is trading at 8,075, down by a mere five points.

The BSE Mid-cap Index is trading up 0.26% at 12,031, whereas BSE Small-cap Index is trading down 0.32% at 11,802.

NTPC, ONGC, Bajaj Auto, GAIL, M&M, HDFC, RIL and Maruti Suzuki are among the gainers, whereas Tata Motors, Dr Reddy's, Sun Pharmaceuticals, ITC, Adani Ports, Wipro are losing sheen on BSE.

Some buying activity is seen in oil & gas, power and energy sectors, while consumer durables, auto, banking, finance and telecom sectors are showing weakness on BSE.

The INDIA VIX is down 3.24% at 18.1025. Out of 1,851 stocks traded on the NSE, 755 declined, 661 advanced and 435 remained unchanged today.

A total of one stock registered a fresh 52-week high in trade today, while 26 stocks touched a new 52-week low on the NSE.

The Indian rupee opened lower by 18 paise at 68/$ against Friday's close as against the previous close of 67.81/$. The rupee fell to its lowest level since June 24.

Asian markets opened mixed with currency weakness hitting most indices. The Japanese yen hit 110 to the US$ & led the gainers with the Nikkei index scaling 18,000 while the South Korean won led the Kospi index lower. Expect the volatility to settle down by next week as the markets adjust to the new reality of higher bond yields globally as cost of money rises.

The economic data of the US seems to justify a rate hike ‘relatively soon’ says Fed Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who intends to serve out her full term in office. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to meet US President-elect Donald Trump in New York today. Fitch Ratings warned about the uncertainty created by Trump’s campaign rhetoric, stating talks of a more unilateral foreign policy are particularly significant given US status as the world’s biggest economy and a key diplomatic and military power.

RBI has decided to expand the list of eligible debt instruments foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) are allowed to invest in and included unlisted securities such as non-convertible debentures (NCDs) and bonds issued by public or private companies.

Parliament paralysis is back in India as the political slugfest continued over the demonetisation move even as the Opposition demanded the prime minister’s presence in the Rajya Sabha.

Trump gold price rally evaporates

Trump gold price rally evaporates

On Monday gold began to lose sight of the $1,300 an ounce level with December futures trading on the Comex market in New York falling more than 1.5% compared to Friday's close to exchange hands at $1,284.10 an ounce in early morning dealings.

The gold price was hurt by a surge in the US dollar index to 97.75 as the currency regains lost ground following news that the FBI has closed an investigation without finding new evidence of wrongdoing in the ongoing Hillary Clinton private email server scandal. Last week when the new probe was first announced, Donald Trump gained sharply in polls and and the dollar came under pressure from the uncertainty surrounding the impact on financial markets should Trump triumph.
Conventional wisdom is that the gold price and the dollar move in opposite directions. The dollar's all-time peak of 164.7 was reached in February 1985. That coincided with a bottom in the price of gold of $284.25 an ounce. In August and September when gold was peaking above $1,900, the dollar index dipped below 75.

“It looks like the market is overwhelmingly pricing in a Clinton victory,” Vyanne Lai, an economist at National Australia Bank in Melbourne, told Bloomberg on Monday:
“The U.S. dollar has jumped, which in turn is weighing on gold prices. You can see there’s some sort of a relief rally in the equity market as well.”
Trump could add $200 an ounce

Last week HSBC Chief Precious Metals Analyst James Steel was quoted by Bloomberg as saying a Clinton win would be supportive of the gold price, but a Trump triumph could spark as much as a $200 an ounce jump in the price adding that the metal could "enjoy at least a 8 percent jump whoever wins the race":

Both candidates have espoused trade policies that could stimulate demand, with gold offering a potential "protection against protectionism," he says. Even the relatively more internationalist Democratic candidate has argued for the renegotiation of longstanding free-trade agreements. That's positive for gold — even if "not on the scale of Mr Trump’s agenda.
Year to date gold is managing gains of 21% or more than $220 an ounce, one of its best annual performances since 1980.