Indian benchmark indices stare at a positive start on weekly F&O expiry. SGX Nifty hinted at a positive start for domestic equities as Nifty futures traded 111 pts or 0.61% up at 18361 levels. In the previous session, BSE Sensex plunged 1%, while Nifty 50 plummeted 186 pts to 18,199. “Indian markets underperformed their Asian peers and came down crumbling on broad-based sell-off, mainly over concerns that recessionary fears in key major economies will have a spill-over effect on the local growth prospects going ahead. Investors are also worried that mounting Covid cases in China may lead to further deterioration in global economic health prompting traders to cut their equity market exposure,” said Shrikant Chouhan, Head of Equity Research (Retail), Kotak Securities.
7 things to know before share market opening bell
Global market watch: Global cues are positive as Asia-Pacific shares traded higher, carrying on the optimism on Wall Street. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 1.8%, and Mainland China’s Shanghai Composite inched up 0.6%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 added 0.29%, while South Korea’s Kospi gained 0.57%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.53%. Overnight in the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.6%, the S&P 500 gained 1.49%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 1.54%.
Levels to watch: For the day, Nifty support is placed at around 18,083 and then at 17,968 levels, while resistance is observed at 18,394 and then at 18,589 levels. For Bank Nifty, support is placed at around 42,116, followed by 41,615 levels, while resistance is observed at 43,367 and then at 44,116, according to Reliance Securities.
FII and DII data: Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities shares worth Rs 1,119.11 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) purchased shares worth Rs 1,757.37 crore on 21 December, according to the provisional data available on the NSE.
Stocks under F&O ban on NSE: The National Stock Exchange has retained GNFC, Indiabulls Housing Finance, and IRCTC stocks under its F&O ban list for Thursday, 22 December. Securities thus banned under the F&O segment include companies where derivative contracts have crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit.
Sula Vineyards listing: Shares of India’s largest wine producer, Sula Vineyards, will debut on stock exchanges BSE and NSE on 22 December. Most analysts expect a muted listing, judging from tepid investor response to the IPO and subdued equity market sentiment. Sula Vineyards shares were trading at 3-4% discount in the grey market, hinting at a disappointing listing. Sula Vineyards IPO was subscribed 2.33 times during December 12-14, with every category fully subscribed.
RBI Guv against pausing rate hikes: Investors may take cues from RBI MPC minutes released on Wednesday. In a scenario where inflation continues to remain elevated, a “premature pause” in monetary policy action would be a “costly policy error”, Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das said while voting for a 35 basis points hike in the repo rate in the December policy, according to the minutes of the Monetary Policy Committee meeting held during December 5-7. Das also said that in a tightening cycle, especially in a world of high uncertainty, giving out explicit forward guidance on the future path of monetary policy would be counterproductive.