Sensex, Nifty to open lower; Paytm, RIL, PB Fintech, Delta Corp shares in focus

Indian benchmark indices, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty, are poised to open lower on Tuesday, following weak cues from global peers amid rising concerns about U.S. inflation and the Fed's plans to roll back its economic stimulus. The bearish trends on SGX Nifty also signalled a gap-down opening for the Indian equities, with SGX Nifty futures trading 58.5 points, or 0.32%, lower at 17,989 on the Singapore Stock Exchange at 8:00 AM.

On Monday, the Indian benchmark indices closed higher, undermining mixed cues from global peers, amid earnings optimism even as the threat of increasing Covid-19 cases continued to loom on the equity market. The BSE Sensex ended 651 points, or 1.09%, higher at 60,395, while the NSE Nifty gained 190 points, or 1.07%, to reclaim 18,000 levels. The equity market witnessed broad-based buying with all the major sectors closing in positive terrain. The capital goods and realty sectors were among top performers, while healthcare and metal indices settled with least gains. Luxury products company Titan emerged as the top gainer on the BSE Sensex pack, ending 3.3% higher. Some of the other notable gainers on the BSE Sensex pack were Maruti Suzuki India, Larsen & Toubro, State Bank of India, and Housing Development Finance Corporation, which rose nearly 2.5% each.

Stocks in news

Individual companies that will be in focus in today’s trade include Paytm, Reliance Industries, PB Fintech, Shriram Transport Finance, and others.

Paytm (One 97 Communications): Shares of the e-commerce company will be in focus today after it reported over four-fold jump in loan disbursals from its platform during the December quarter of 2021. The company in an exchange filing said it disbursed 44 lakh loans worth Rs 2,180 crore during the quarter. Shares of Paytm are currently down 45% from the IPO price.

Reliance Industries: The Mukesh Ambani-led company is reportedly in talks to acquire debt-laden Sintex Industries.

PB Fintech: The parent company of Policybazaar and Paisabazaar, registered a 67% year-on-year growth in insurance premium collection during the December quarter of 2021.

Shriram Transport Finance: The NBFC garnered $475 million by selling bonds to global investors, which will be used to expand loan portfolio.

Here are key things investors should know before the market opens today:

Wall Street ends tad lower in choppy trade

In the overnight trade, the major U.S. indices staged a smart recovery to end a tad lower, rebounding from their earlier losses in the final hours' rally. The tech-heavy NASDAQ Composite managed to close marginally higher and snap a four-day losing streak, after falling almost 3% earlier in the day. The S&P 500 slipped 0.1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.5%.

Investors remained concerned about the interest rate hike and awaited the U.S. inflation data to have more clarity on the timing of the rate rise. Adding to it, investors were also worried about the impact of the latest wave of Covid-19 on the fourth-quarter earnings season which begins later this week.

Asian markets bleed in early trade

Shares in the Asia-Pacific region traded mostly lower in early trade, following weak cues from Wall Street. Investors remained concerned about looming fear of potential shift in the U.S. monetary policy to tame inflation.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index was the worst performer in the regional market by falling 0.9% in early trade. Japan’s Nikkei was followed by Australia’s ASX 200 index, which dropped 0.65%.

In a similar trend, China’s Shanghai Composite traded marginally lower, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong dropped 0.1%.

South Korea’s KOSPI traded lower by 0.25%, while the Taiwan Weighted Index fell 0.3%. Thailand’s SET Composite also edged lower in early deals.

Meanwhile, the Straits Times Index in Singapore and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite trade higher with marginal gains.

Corporate earnings

Some of the companies that will announce their December quarter results today include Delta Corp, Earum Pharmaceuticals, Ganesh Housing Corporation, National Standard, Radhe Developers (India) and Vikas Proppant & Granite.

Crude oil prices rebound

Crude oil futures traded higher during early Asian trading hours on Tuesday as supplies resumed in Kazakhstan while production in Libya remained volatile. However, oil demand worries remained a cause of concern amid fast-spreading coronavirus cases across the globe.

The U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) Crude oil futures for February were up 0.6% at $78.70 a barrel, while the Brent oil futures for March traded 0.23% higher at $81.25 per barrel.

In the overnight trade, global benchmark Brent crude and the U.S. WTI crude ended lower on demand fears. Brent crude dropped 1.1% to end at $80.87 a barrel, while the U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 0.9% to settle at $78.23 per barrel.

Gold rises ahead of key US inflation data

Gold prices edged higher on Tuesday with traders waiting for key December U.S. inflation data later this week that could lead to a potential shift in the U.S. monetary policy. The strong U.S. dollar and rising bond yields continued to limit yellow metal’s gain.

Spot gold was up 0.24% at $1,806.11 per ounce by 8:15 AM IST.

FIIs turn net sellers, DIIs remain net buyers

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net sellers in the Indian equity market on January 10, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) emerged as net buyers. As per the data available on the NSE, FIIs net sold shares worth ₹124.23 crore, while DIIs net bought shares worth ₹481.55 crore.