“Stock Market News: In the previous session, the BSE Sensex jumped 243 points to settle at 61,275, while the Nifty50 advanced 86 points to close at 18,016”
The market is expected to open in the green on February 16 as trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the broader index in India with a gain of 55 points.
As per the pivot charts, the Nifty has support at 17,899 followed by 17,856 and then 17,788. If the index moves up, the key resistance levels to watch out for are 18,037, followed by 18,079 and 18,148.
The S&P 500 ended higher on Wednesday after stronger-than-expected retail sales data offered evidence of resilience in the U.S. economy, but gains were capped as investors worried about more interest rate hikes by Federal Reserve in the months ahead.
The S&P 500 climbed 0.28 percent to end the session at 4,147.61 points. The Nasdaq gained 0.92 percent to 12,070.59 points, while Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.11 percent to 34,128.05 points.
Asian Markets
Asia Pacific markets traded higher on Thursday as investors digested Japan’s record trade deficit of $26 billion according to Refinitiv data that dates back to March 2006. Investors also digested a stronger than expected US retail sales report from Wall Street.
Nikkei 225 rose 0.55 percent and the Topix inched up 0.44 percent. In South Korea, the Kospi rose 0.67 percent. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 opened 0.19 percent higher.
SGX Nifty
Trends in the SGX Nifty indicate a positive opening for the broader index in India with a gain of 55 points. The Nifty futures were trading around 18,075 levels on the Singaporean exchange.
January trade deficit at one-year low of $17.75 billion but exports also down 6.58%
India’s trade deficit in January sank to its lowest in a year at $17.75 billion but exports, too, contracted 6.58 percent during the month, hit by a slump in global demand, data released by the government on February 15 showed.
The merchandise exports came down to $32.91 billion in January from $35.23 billion in the year-ago period. Merchandise imports, too, slipped 3.63 percent, the second straight month of decline, to $50.66 billion. In January 2022, they stood at $52.57 billion.
During the April-January 2022-23 period, exports rose 8.51 percent to $369.25 billion, while imports increased 21.89 percent to $602.20 billion, the data showed.
US retail sales post biggest gain in nearly two years
US retail sales increased by the most in nearly two years in January after two straight monthly declines as Americans boosted purchases of motor vehicles and other goods, pointing to the economy’s continued resilience despite higher borrowing costs.
The Commerce Department said on Wednesday that retail sales surged 3.0 percent last month, the largest increase since March 2021, after declining by an unrevised 1.1 percent in December.
US manufacturing output surges in January
Production at US factories rebounded in January, but output in the prior month was much weaker than initially thought amid higher borrowing costs that are hurting the manufacturing sector.
Manufacturing output increased 1.0 percent last month, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday. Data for December was revised down to show production at factories declining 1.8% instead of the previously reported 1.3 percent. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast factory production would increase 0.8 percent.
Results on February 16
Nestle India and Schaeffler India will be in focus ahead of quarterly earnings on February 16.
FII and DII data
Foreign institutional investors (FII) bought shares worth Rs 432.15 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) purchased shares worth Rs 516.64 crore on February 15, NSE’s provisional data showed.
Oil little changed as market discounts big US crude storage build
Oil futures were flat to lower on Wednesday as the US dollar strengthened and investors worried that rising interest rates would slow the economy and cut fuel demand. Oil’s losses were limited as the market discounted a big build in US crude stocks due to a data adjustment and as the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecast higher global oil demand growth.
Brent futures slid 20 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $85.38 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 47 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $78.59.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE
The National Stock Exchange has retained BHEL, Punjab National Bank, Ambuja Cements and Indiabulls Housing Finance on its F&O ban list for February 16. Securities banned under the F&O segment include companies where derivative contracts have crossed 95 percent of the market-wide position limit.
With inputs from Reuters and other agencies