1 / 101. Asia: Stocks in Asia Pacific rose in Thursday morning trade after the S&P 500 cruised to another record overnight stateside. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 rose 1.35 percent in early trade as shares of Fast Retailing jumped more than 2.5 percent. The Topix index also gained 0.96 percent. South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.84 percent. Meanwhile, the S&P/ASX 200 in Australia gained 0.88 percent. Overall, the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index traded 0.21 percent higher, reported CNBC International. (Image: Reuters)
2 / 102. US: Futures contracts tied to the major U.S. stock indexes held steady in extended trading Wednesday evening as investors looked to pare already-robust gains seen on Wall Street so far this week. Dow futures slipped 10 points in the overnight session, pointing to a open around the flatline when regular trading resumes Thursday morning in New York. S&P 500 and Nasdaq-100 contracts pointed to similar muted trades, reported CNBC International. (Image: Reuters)
3 / 103. Market At Close On Wednesday: The Indian benchmark equity indices, Sensex and Nifty staged a decent recovery from the day’s low to end higher Wednesday led by gains in metals, media and auto stocks amid positive momentum in global markets. The Sensex ended 185.23 points or 0.48 percent higher at 39,086.03 while the Nifty gained 72.75 points or 0.63 percent to close at 11,543.00. Broader indices participated in the rally with Nifty Smallcap100 and Nifty Midcap100 indices gaining more than 1 percent each. (Image: Reuters)
4 / 104. Crude Oil: Oil fell more than 2% on Wednesday, reversing course as gasoline demand fell in the United States in the latest week, an indication that economic recovery from the pandemic may be slower than expected. Futures prices turned negative after weekly government data from the U.S. showed lower gasoline demand from a week earlier, shrugging off bullish crude inventory data. Brent crude, the global benchmark, fell $1.15, or 2.5 percent, to settle at $44.43 per barrel, after two days of price gains. West Texas Intermediate crude settled 2.9 percent, or $1.25, lower at $41.51 per barrel. (Image: Reuters)
5 / 105. Rupee Close: The Indian currency closed slightly lower on Wednesday tracking muted domestic equities and strengthening American currency.The rupee ended at 73.03 against the US dollar as compared to Tuesday's close of 72.87. (Image: Reuters)
6 / 106. SEBI On Margin Obligations: Sebi on Wednesday said entities will not be required to make disclosures about shares encumbered with trading and clearing members by way of pledge or re-pledge in the depository system as part of improving the ease of doing business. The decision has been taken after receiving representations from market participants, Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) said in a circular. "For ease of doing business, it has been decided that disclosures specified under... of the Takeover Regulations in relation to shares encumbered with TM/CM as a collateral from clients for margin obligation in the ordinary course of stock broking business are dispensed with," market regulator Sebi said. (Image: Reuters)
7 / 107. Govt Increases Airlines' Capacity: The government has now allowed airlines to operate with 60 percent capacity in the domestic segment, as per a decision taken on Wednesday. The domestic flight operations were allowed to resume from May 25 after a two-month shutdown and airlines were asked to operate with one-third capacity. Gradually, the government allowed airlines to operate with 45 percent capacity and now it has been extended to 60 percent with immediate effect. As per the order, the decision has been taken in view of the current scheduled domestic flight operations and the demand seen for air travel in the domestic market. (Image: Trans States Airlines/LinkedIn)
8 / 108. IBC Cases Drop In June: The number of cases admitted under the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC) dropped by almost 75 percent in the June quarter compared to the same period last year. According to the latest data released by the Insolvency & Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI), only 76 corporate insolvency cases were admitted between April and June. This compares to 301 admitted in the same quarter last year, showing a decline of almost 75 percent. As many as 435 cases were admitted by bankruptcy courts in the March quarter, over 82 percent more than the June quarter. Experts believe the sharp fall in the number of cases can largely be attributed to lockdown-related challenges. (stock image)
9 / 109. MSMEs Paid Rs 6,800 Crore In Last 3 Months: Central ministries and PSUs have cleared payments to the tune of over Rs 6,800 crore owed to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the last three months, the government said on Wednesday. It said almost three-fourths of the monthly dues have been paid during the same month by most of the ministries and CPSEs. The pending amounts are expected to be released in the normal course of business and within 45 days. The MSME ministry, in a statement, said that "more than Rs 6,800 crore has been paid by the Ministries and CPSEs in the last three months alone". The ministry also said close to 4 lakh registrations have already taken place on the Udyam registration portal for MSMEs since the new system was launched in July. (image: Reuters)
10 / 1010. Food Secretary On Free Foodgrains To Migrants: The government has brought the distribution of free food grain under the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat scheme to a successful conclusion by covering 2.8 crore migrants identified by states between May and August 2020. Consequently, the government has decided not to extend the scheme beyond August 31 as it covered the 'target group'. It said that the scheme has served all identified and deserving 'target group' with 17 states utilising 80 percent or more food grain in relation to their assessment. The Food Ministry in a statement said, "States/UTs collectively indicated a total population of about 2.8 crore… such persons who could potentially benefit from the distribution of free-of-cost food-grains under the Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Scheme (ANBS)." (stock image)
