Live Market Updates Today: 17 May

The SGX Nifty indicates a negative start for the broader index with a loss of 40 points on Wednesday. SGX futures stood at 18,289.

US Markets

US stocks closed lower on Tuesday and the benchmark Treasury yields extended their rise as mixed economic data, weak corporate results and ongoing debt ceiling negotiations in Washington dampened investor risk appetite.

While all three major US stock indices ended down, the tech-heavy Nasdaq's losses were held in check by momentum megacaps including Amazon.com, Alphabet Inc and Microsoft Corp.

President Joe Biden and House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy met to try to hammer out details of an agreement to raise the US debt ceiling to avoid a catastrophic default in the face of a looming deadline.

European Markets

Europe’s benchmark Stoxx 600 index closed 0.4 percent lower on Tuesday after trading near the flatline for most of the session. US stocks pulled European markets lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Index falling around 200 points following a lackluster forecast from Home Depot.

The UK’s FTSE 100 fell 0.34 percent, dragged down by declines in mining stocks. France’s CAC 40 ended the day down 0.16 percent while Germany’s DAX dipped 0.12 percent.

Asian markets

Asia-Pacific markets are trading mixed as the region looks to economic data from several countries, including Japan and Australia. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 0.45 percent in early trade, while the Topix was up 0.11 percent, as the index maintained in levels at the highest since August 1990.

This comes as the country’s first quarter gross domestic product grew 1.6 percent on an annualized basis, higher than the 0.7 percent expected by economists polled by Reuters. South Korea’s Kospi traded close to the flatline on Wednesday, while the Kosdaq saw a 0.49 percent gain.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.79 percent, dragged by mining stocks as investors await the nation’s wage price index later today. In Hong Kong, futures for the Hang Seng index were at 19,884, lower than the HSI’s last close of 19,978.25.

Oil prices

Oil futures edged lower on Tuesday as weaker-than-expected economic data in China offset a forecast of higher global demand from the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Brent crude futures last dropped 26 cents to $74.97 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude edged down 17 cents to $70.94. Both benchmarks rose more than 1 percent on Monday, reversing a three-session losing streak.

Dollar

The Dollar index traded 0.01 percent higher in futures at 102.57, whereas the value of one dollar hovered near Rs 82.29.

Gold

Gold fell below $2,000 on Tuesday after US economic data and hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve officials drove bets that interest rate cuts may be delayed, while

traders kept an eye on the US debt-ceiling talks.

Spot gold was down 1.47 percent at $1,990.89 per ounce, while US gold futures fell 1.38 percent to $1,994.70.

FII and DII

Foreign institutional investors (FII) bought shares worth Rs 1,406.86 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DII) sold shares worth Rs 886.17 crore on May 16, provisional data from the National Stock Exchange showed.

With inputs from Reuters and other agencies.