1. Asia: Stocks in major Asia-Pacific markets dipped in Tuesday morning trade as investors await the October fixing of China’s benchmark lending rate. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 declined 0.15 percent while the Topix index also shed 0.21 percent. South Korea’s Kospi was about 0.2 percent lower, as shares of chipmaker SK Hynix fell around 3 percent after the firm said Tuesday it will buy part of Intel’s business for about $9 billion, according to Reuters. Meanwhile, shares in Australia fell, with the S&P/ASX 200 down 0.39 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.13 percent lower, reported CNBC International. (Image: Reuters)
2. US: U.S. stock futures rose on Monday evening ahead of a deadline for a new fiscal stimulus deal from Washington. Futures contracts for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 150 points, while those for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 rose 0.6 percent and 0.7 percent. The move in futures comes after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin “continued to narrow their differences” in a Monday afternoon phone call to discuss another stimulus package, according to Pelosi spokesman Drew Hammill. The speaker said that Tuesday is the deadline to reach an agreement before the November 3 election, reported CNBC International. (Image: AP)
3. Market Closing: Indian shares ended over a percent higher on Monday, boosted mainly by bank and FMCG stocks. The sentiment was also lifted on hopes of a US stimulus package before the presidential election and expectations of a COVID-19 vaccine by year-end. The Sensex ended 449 points higher at 40,432 while the Nifty rose 110 points to settle at 11,873. Broader markets were also in line with the benchmarks with the Nifty Midcap and Nifty Smallcap indices up around 0.7 percent each.(Image: Reuters)
4. Crude Oil: Oil steadied on Monday, weighed by concerns over surging coronavirus cases globally and by Libya’s plan to boost output, but supported by hopes for a U.S. fiscal package. Analysts also focused on an OPEC+ ministerial monitoring committee meeting on Monday. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said the committee recommended to stick in full to the group’s global deal to reduce oil production. Brent crude futures fell 22 cents to $42.71 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures settled 5 cents, or 0.1 percent, lower at $40.83 per barrel, reported CNBC International. (Image: Reuters)
5. Rupee: The rupee settled on a flat note and fell 2 paise to 73.37 against the American currency on Monday even as the domestic equity market was trading with significant gains. The local unit opened at 73.38 against the US dollar at the interbank forex market and finally finished the day at 73.37 against the greenback, down by just 2 paise over its previous close of 73.35. (Image: Reuters)
6. Finance Minister: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday exhorted large central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) to achieve by December 75 per cent of their planned capital expenditure (capex) target for 2020-21, to support economic growth hit by the COVID-19 crisis. She held a virtual meeting with secretaries of coal and petroleum & natural gas, along with the chairman and managing directors (CMDs) of 14 CPSEs belonging to these ministries, an official statement said. This was the fourth in the ongoing series of meetings that the finance minister is having with various stakeholders to accelerate the economic growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic. While reviewing the performance of CPSEs, Sitharaman said capex by CPSEs is a critical driver of economic growth and needs to be scaled up for the financial year 2020-21 and 2021-22. (Image: PTI)
7. FM On Interactions With NK Singh: Chairman of the 15th Finance Commission NK Singh's autobiography is being launched today. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Reliance Industries Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani and Minister of Social Policies at Singapore Tharman Shanmugaratnam were prominent guests in attendance. Speaking at the event, FM Nirmala Sitharaman said, "That one visit to Japan, which he literally led all the way to attract Japanese investment to India… I saw and felt the affection and regard everybody in the establishment in Japan had for him." She added, "The sequence of interactions have been so enriching and rewarding." (Image: PTI)
8. Nirmal Bang On Gold Prices: Gold and silver prices are likely to rise sharply over the next one month, Kunal Shah of Nirmal Bang Commodities told CNBC-TV18. “The investment demand is robust, another stimulus is expected out of US, and India and China retail demand is also back. So, I think gold and silver both are going to rally,” he said. Shah further added that he expects gold prices to be at Rs 53,000-53,500 (per 10 gm) by Diwali and Rs 54,000 by the end of the year. He expects silver prices to be at Rs 68,000-69,000 (per kg) by Diwali and Rs 70,000-73,000 by the end of the year. (stock image)
9. DHFL To Repay Lenders: On the day the deadline to submit bids to acquire his bankrupt firm was to end, Dewan Housing Finance Limited (DHFL) promoter Kapil Wadhawan made an offer to settle all claims against the company. In a nine-page letter addressed to the administrator of DHFL R Subramaniakumar dated October 17, Wadhawan proposed that he transfer the rights, title and interest in the firm's projects to himself to ensure "maximum value" to stakeholders. He claimed that the total profit from 10 of DHFL's projects is pegged at an estimated Rs 43,897 crore, and not the suppressed value "outside forces" are trying to project. Wadhawan claimed that even these valuations done by "internationally acclaimed external valuers" was conservative and lower than the actual market value. (Image: Reuters)
10. Bill Gates On COVID Vaccine: COVID-19 vaccines will be the fastest vaccine to be ever developed and they will be available by the summer of 2021, billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates said on Monday. The world needs to be better prepared to deal with any next pandemic and for that vaccine platforms required to be built, which can develop vaccines faster than traditional route, he said while addressing at the Grand Challenges Annual Meeting 2020, which is being held virtually. COVID-19 has pushed global economy into deep economic depression, he added. “Researchers are breaking silos, 1,37,000 COVID-19 genomic sequences have been shared.” (Image: Reuters)