1. Wall Street | US stocks ended mostly lower on Friday, weighed down by technology and consumer discretionary shares, while the dollar edged higher after stronger-than-expected US manufacturing data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 123.69 points, or 0.36 percent, to 34,207.84, the S&P 500 lost 3.26 points, or 0.08 percent, to 4,155.86 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 64.75 points, or 0.48 percent, to 13,470.99.
2. Asian markets | Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Monday, with markets in Japan, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia advancing. The Japanese benchmark index, Nikkei 225, was up 0.4 percent, trimming some of its earlier gains. The Topix index added 0.54 percent. Singapore’s Straits Times Index rose 0.39 percent while the Jakarta Composite in Indonesia was up 0.47 percent and the Malaysian benchmark index added 0.82 percent. In South Korea, Kospi index fell 0.29 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was down 0.59 percent. Chinese mainland shares also declined: The Shanghai composite was down 0.35 percent while the Shenzhen component fell 0.8 percent.
3. Indian market on Friday | The Indian equity benchmark indices ended with strong gains Friday led by broad-based buying across sectors amid positive global cues. The Sensex jumped 975.62 points, or 1.97 percent to 50,540.48, while the Nifty ended at 15,175.30, up 269.25 points, or 1.81 percent. Gains in midcap and smallcap indices also supported the rally. All sectoral indices closed in the green with Nifty Bank surging over 3 percent followed by financial services, IT, auto and realty indices.
4. Crude oil | Oil prices rose on Monday as a storm formed in the Gulf of Mexico and Iran said a three-month nuclear monitoring deal had expired, raising doubts about the future of indirect talks that could end US sanctions on Iranian crude exports. Brent crude oil futures for July rose 32 cents, or 0.5 percent to $66.76 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate for July was at $63.93 a barrel, up 35 cents, or 0.6 percent.
5. Rupee | The Indian rupee surged by 29 paise to hit an eight-week high of 72.83 against the US dollar on Friday, tracking positive domestic equities and upbeat Asian peers against the American currency. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 72.98 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 72.83 and a low of 73.09. It finally ended with a gain of 29 paise at 72.83 to the US dollar the level not seen since March 26. On a weekly basis, the rupee has appreciated by 46 paise against the American dollar.
6. US manufacturing powers ahead | US factory activity gathered speed in early May amid strong domestic demand, but backlogs of uncompleted work are piling up as manufacturers struggle to find raw materials and labor, boosting costs for both businesses and consumers. Data firm IHS Markit said its flash U.S. manufacturing PMI increased to 61.5 in the first half of this month. That was the highest reading since October 2009, and followed a final reading of 60.5 in April. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index dipping to 60.2 in early May.
7. CII wants RBI to review circular on appointment of bank, NBFC auditors | Industry chamber CII has asked the Reserve Bank to review its circular on appointment of auditors for banks and NBFCs saying it was inconsistent with the provisions of the Companies Act and would create hardship for businesses in times COVID. Urging the RBI to review the circular, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said the proposals “will cause significant hardship to the companies, its stakeholders as well as industry in general”. The chamber said that few matters that warrant an immediate attention of the RBI include a clarification that the circular is only intended to cover banks and NBFCs and their respective audit firms.
8. FPIs net sellers at Rs 4,444 crore in May so far amid COVID-19 surge | Overseas investors withdrew Rs 4,444 crore from Indian markets in May so far amid concerns over the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic and its possible impact on the Indian economy. As per depositories data, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) took out Rs 6,370 crore from equities but pumped in Rs 1,926 crore in the debt segment between May 1-21. This took the total net outflow to Rs 4,444 crore.
9. Gold saving funds see Rs 864-crore inflow in April | Gold saving funds and gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs) witnessed net inflows of Rs 864 crore in April amid an uncertain economic environment in the wake of the second wave of COVID-19. Gold saving funds and gold ETFs have seen net inflow to the tune of Rs 184 crore and Rs 680 crore, respectively in the month of April, according to data provided by Morningstar India. This comes following a net inflow of over Rs 3,200 crore in gold funds in the entire 2020-21, while the same for gold ETFs was more than Rs 6,900 crore as per the data.
10. Sebi doubles overseas investment limit of AIF, VCF to USD 1,500 mn | Markets regulator Sebi on Friday doubled the overseas investment limit of alternative investment funds and venture capital funds to USD 1,500 million. Currently, Sebi-registered alternative investment fund (AIF) or venture capital fund (VCF) are permitted to invest overseas, subject to an overall limit of USD 750 million. Under the rules, AIFs and VCFs need to mandatorily disclose the utilisation of overseas investment limits within five working days of such usage on the market regulator’s intermediary portal.