Yen Surge; Sliding Oil Prices and Top Stocks in Action Today

Fri, 4 Jan Pre-Open

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On Thursday, the Indian share markets ended lower following a selloff in Asian markets. At the closing bell, BSE Sensex ended down by 378 points, while, NSE Nifty ended down by 120 points.

All sectoral indices ended on a negative note with metal stocks, and energy stocks witnessing maximum selling pressure.

Meanwhile, the rupee traded on a weak note having slipped to 70.52 against the dollar in intra-day trade. On Wednesday, the domestic unit crashed 75 paise, its first loss in last four sessions, to close at 70.18 amid strengthening of the greenback and heavy selling in domestic equities.

Top Stocks in Focus

Alembic Pharma share price will be in focus today as it has received USFDA (US Food & Drug Administration) approval Pramipexole Dihydrochloride.

Bharti Airtel lost a paltry 18.6 lakh subscribers in October 2018. Following this, the company's access Service Provider-wise market share in term of Wireless Subscribers stood at 29.2%.

L&T's arm L&T Construction has won orders worth Rs 10.6 billion. The stock will hog limelight today.

Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is going to commission its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminal at Ennore in Tamil Nadu in January, after completion of dredging of the channel that will bring cryogenic ships carrying natural gas in its liquid form to the port.

To know what's moving the Indian stock markets today, check out the most recent share market updates here.

By the way, you can read our recently released Q2FY19 result analysis of the following companies: Asian Paints, TVS Motors, Wipro, Ambuja Cement, HDFC Bank, Infosys and more.

Bank of Baroda, Vijaya Bank & Dena Bank Merger Deal

The cabinet approved the merger of Vijaya Bank & Dena Bank with Bank of Baroda.

After the merger, Bank of Baroda will become the third biggest public sector bank. The merger will be effective from April 1.

This is also the first ever three-way merger in Indian banking.

Reportedly, all employees of Vijay Bank & Dena Bank will be transferred to Bank of Baroda. No retrenchment will take place in the merger process.

The boards of public lenders Bank of Baroda and Dena Bank on Wednesday approved swap ratio for the proposed merger of the two PSU banks.

Further, Dena Bank said that its shareholders will receive 110 equity shares of Bank of Baroda of face value Rs 2 for every 1,000 shares they held.

Vijaya Bank shareholders will get 402 equity shares of Bank of Baroda for every 1,000 shares they held.

Post the completion of the merger with the two banks, Bank of Baroda is likely to be the resulting entity post-merger and will become the third-largest Indian bank, overtaking both Punjab National Bank and ICICI Bank, in terms of assets, but remaining behind State Bank of India and HDFC Bank, the reports noted.

Owing to this development, Dena Bank share price plunged over 19% yesterday. While, Vijaya Bank fell 7%. Bank of Baroda share price ended flat.

Global Stock Market Drivers

On Thursday, European stocks and US equity-index futures slumped after Apple Inc. added to global growth concerns with a cut in its sales outlook.

Stocks in Asia were mixed, while there were wild moves in the currency markets as the yen surged. The news sparked a 'flash crash' in currency markets as the Japanese yen soared against most major currencies in a matter of seconds.

Apple's warning and a weak reading on Chinese manufacturing come as stark examples to investors that the protectionist showdown is starting to have an impact on economic activity, even after US President Donald Trump sounded positive tunes about reaching a trade deal with his counterpart Xi Jinping over the weekend.

In Washington, leaders were unable to strike a deal to end a partial shutdown of the federal government at a meeting Wednesday, adding to the gloom that's gripped markets for the past month.

Here are some events in focus today:

• The US December jobs report is due today.
• Fed Chair Powell will be interviewed with predecessors Janet Yellen and Ben Bernanke at the annual meeting of the American Economic Association.

Oil Prices Slide

Oil prices fell on Thursday amid volatile currency and stock markets. Further, crude supply is also rising globally.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures dropped by around 2% from their last settlement to US$45.61.

International Brent crude futures were down 1.1% at US$54.31 a barrel.

In physical oil markets, top exporter Saudi Arabia is expected to cut February prices for heavier crude grades sold to Asia by up to 50 cents a barrel due to weaker fuel oil margins, the reports noted.

Markets were roiled by a more than 3% slump of the US dollar against the Japanese yen overnight, and after tech giant Apple cut its sales forecast.

Oil markets have also come under pressure from a surge in supply.

US crude production stood at a record 11.7 million barrels per day (bpd) in late 2018, making the United States the world's biggest oil producer.

In the latest edition of The 5 Minute WrapUp, research analyst, Sarvajeet Bodas explains how Game Theory shows OPEC's struggle to control the market. And what this means for Indian market. Here's an excerpt from the article:

• "Here, all countries want to see production cuts to support the oil price. But rarely does a country want to cut themselves for loss of revenues.
  
  Everyone acts out of self-interest. Members end up in a worse scenario than if they collaborated.
  
  People and nations are often jealous of each other."

For information on how to pick stocks that have the potential to deliver big returns, download our special report now!

Read the latest Market Commentary

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INDICESBSE (Rs 0 to 1)BSE (Rs 1 to 2)BSE (Rs 2 to 4)BSE (Rs 4 to 10)BSE (Rs 10 to 20)BSE (Above Rs 20)BSE - AllBSE-30BSE-100BSE-200BSE-500BSE AutoBSE BankexBSE Capital GoodsBSE Consumer DurablesBSE FMCGBSE HealthcareBSE ITBSE MetalBSE Oil & GasBSE PSUBSE TeckBSE RealtyBSE PowerBSE A GroupBSE B GroupBSE Mid-CapBSE Small-CapBSE Basic MaterialsBSE Consumer DiscretionaryBSE IndustrialsBSE UtilitiesBSE Sensex 50BSE Sensex Next 50BSE Bharat 22BSE 150 MidCapBSE 250 SmallCapBSE 250 LargeMidCapBSE 400 MidSmallCapBSE AllCapBSE LargeCapBSE SmallCap SelectBSE 100 LargeCap TMCBSE InfraBSE ManufacturingBSE CPSEBSE Private BankBSE Diversified FinancialsBSE MomentumBSE Low VolatilityBSE QualityBSE Enhanced ValueBSE Divident StabilityS&P BSE IPOBSE SMEIPOBSE 100 ESGBSE CarbonexBSE GreenexNSE (Rs 0 to 10)NSE (Rs 10 to 20)NSE (Above Rs 20)NSE - AllNSE-50NSE ITNSE Nifty Midcap 50NSE JR. NiftyNSE Bank NiftyNIFTY Next 50NIFTY 100NIFTY 200NIFTY 500NIFTY MidCap 100NIFTY SmallCap 250NIFTY SmallCap 50NIFTY SmallCap 100NIFTY LargeMidCap 250NIFTY MidSmallCap 400NIFTY AutoNIFTY Consumer DurablesNIFTY FinanceNIFTY FMCGNIFTY MediaNIFTY MetalNIFTY PharmaNIFTY Private BankNIFTY PSU BankNIFTY RealtyNIFTY Oil & GasNIFTY SME EmergeNIFTY CommoditiesNIFTY CPSENIFTY EnergyNIFTY India ConsumptionNIFTY InfraNIFTY MNCNIFTY PSENIFTY Serv SectorNIFTY100 Liquid 15NIFTY Midcap Liquid 15NIFTY Midcap 150 Quality 50NIFTY50 Equal WeightNIFTY100 Equal WeightNIFTY100 Low Volatility 30NIFTY100 Alpha 30NIFTY Alpha 50NIFTY Dividend Opportunities 50NIFTY High Beta 50NIFTY Low Volatility 50NIFTY200 Quality 30NIFTY 500 Value 50NIFTY 100 Quality 30SECTORSAgricultureAirlinesAluminiumAsset Management CompaniesAutomobilesAuto AncillariesBanks (Private)Banks (PSU)BankingCementChemicalsDefenceDiagnosticsDronesEngineeringElectric VehicleElectric Vehicle BatteryEnergy SourcesESGEthanolFertilizersFintechFMCGFoodGreen HydrogenHotelsInfrastructureInsuranceInvestment and FinanceInvITIT (Large)IT (Others)LogisticsMediaMetalMiningIndia's Big Tech StocksIndian PharmaMNC PharmaPSUPaintPaperPlasticPowerRating AgenciesReal EstateREITsRenewable EnergyRetailingSemiconductorShippingSteelSugarSupply ChainTelecomTextilesTravel Support Services

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