Markets to make positive start of F&O expiry session

Indian markets reversed early losses and ended at record-high closing levels on Wednesday led by energy, metal and media names. Today, the start of the F&O series expiry session is likely to be in green tracking gains in Asian counterparts. Sentiments will get boost as Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in its Interim Economic Outlook said that Indian economy will likely log faster growth at 6.7 percent in FY25 compared with 6.6 percent projected earlier. It added growth has been relatively robust in many G20 countries, including the United States, Brazil, India, Indonesia and the United Kingdom. Some support will come as data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed that formal job creation picked up for the first four months of the FY25. New subscriptions to all three social security schemes were higher for the first four months, as there was a further pickup in job creation. Traders will be taking encouragement with report that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met Uzbekistan Deputy Prime Minister Jamshid Khodjaev to discuss a strategic partnership across multiple sectors. The meeting underscored the remarkable growth in India's digital payments ecosystem, opening avenues for cooperation between Uzbek and Indian fintech firms. Traders may take note of the World Economic Forum in its latest Chief Economists Outlook said that a majority of chief economists have shown a cautious optimism about the global economy with India's robust performance making South Asia the best performer worldwide. However, global geopolitical tensions, particularly in the Middle East, will be closely monitored. Recent Israeli strikes have led to major casualties in Lebanon, escalating conflicts between Israel and Hezbollah. This ongoing situation is likely to impact market sentiment, particularly crude prices and supply chain focused sectors. Foreign fund outflows likely to dampen sentiments. Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) offloaded shares worth Rs 973.94 crore on September 26, 2024. There will be some reaction in coal industry stocks with report that there is a critical need for coal imports, and the country has reported a marginal rise of 0.9 per cent to 90.51 MT in the April-July period of FY25. Ministry of Coal said India, which has the fifth-largest coal reserves in the world, is also its second-largest consumer, driven by a rapidly growing economy. Agriculture stocks will be in limelight as the agriculture ministry said India's foodgrain production reached a record 332.22 million tonne in the 2023-24 crop year ended June, driven by bumper wheat and rice output. The ministry said the final estimate for 2023-24 shows an increase of 2.61 million tonne from the previous year's 329.6 million tonne.

The US markets ended mostly in red on Wednesday as investors awaited economic indicators and signals on upcoming interest rate cuts. Asian markets are trading mostly in green on Thursday as a weaker yen and Beijing stimulus measures supported the region’s two largest stock markets.

Back home, Indian equity benchmarks ended in green territory on Wednesday as fag-end buying in Utilities, Power and Realty shares helped markets recoup early losses. After a negative start, the markets witnessed rangebound movement throughout the session, amid foreign fund outflows. As per NSE data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FII) were net sellers of Indian equities worth Rs 2,784.14 crore. Some anxiety also came as global rating agency S&P stated that India’s private sector will have to shoulder more investment responsibility for the country’s growth because India’s fiscal settings are constrained and the government might not be able to provide as much financial support as before. Traders remained on sidelines ahead of F&O monthly expiry on Thursday. But, a sudden spurt in the last hour of the trading session propelled the indices to end the session with gains. Traders took support as the Asian Development Bank (ADB) retained India's growth forecast for the current fiscal at 7 per cent and said that the economy is expected to accelerate in the coming quarters on improved farm output, and higher Government spending. Some optimism also came as Moody’s Analytics in its new Asia Pacific outlook noted that the Indian economy will likely grow faster at 7.1% in 2024 from 6.8% projected earlier. While the research firm kept the country’s growth forecast unchanged at 6.5 percent for 2025, it projected a faster growth of 6.6% in 2026. Traders also took a note of reports that India surpassed Japan to become the third-largest power in the Asia Power Index, reflecting its increasing geopolitical stature. This achievement is driven by India's dynamic growth, youthful population, and expanding economy, solidifying its position as a leading force in the region. Finally, the BSE Sensex rose 255.83 points or 0.30% to 85,169.87, and the CNX Nifty was up by 63.75 points or 0.25% to 26,004.15.