10 things you need to know before the opening bell on May 14

SUMMARY

The Indian market is likely to open on a cautious note on Friday amid worries over the economic impact of the second wave of COVID-19 and lockdowns and restrictions in various states. Meanwhile, the SGX Nifty was trading around 14,660 versus Nifty May Futures’ pervious close of 14,708, at 7:50 am.

By CNBCTV18.comMay 14, 2021 8:15:12 AM IST (Published)

1. Wall Street:Stocks closed higher on Wall Street Thursday, snapping a three-day losing streak that included the biggest drop for the S&P 500 since February. The S&P 500 rose 1.2 percent, the DJIA gained 1.3 percent and the Nasdaq 0.7 percent.

2. Asian stocks: Stocks in Asia-Pacific rose Friday morning, following an overnight bounce for stocks stateside. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 jumped 1.43 percent in morning trade — partially recovering from the more than 2 percent plunge seen on Thursday. South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.78 percent. Mainland Chinese stocks were higher in early trade, with the Shanghai composite rising 0.3 percent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index gained 0.64 percent. Over in Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.74 percent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan traded 0.74 percent higher.

3. D-Street:The National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange remained closed on Thursday on account of Id-Ul-Fitr. On Wednesday, the Sensex ended 471.01 points or 0.96 percent lower at 48690.80 while the Nifty fell 154.30 points or 1.04 percent to close at 14696.50.

4. Crude oil: Oil prices fell on Friday after dropping about 3 percent a day earlier as coronavirus cases remained high in major oil consumer India and as a key fuel pipeline in the United States resumed operations after being shut due to a cyber attack. Brent crude oil futures were down 0.5 percent at $66.70 a barrel by 0200 GMT, while US WTI was down 0.4 percent at $63.54 a barrel.

5. Rupee: The rupee declined by 8 paise to close at 73.42 against the US currency on Wednesday, snapping its four-day gaining streak due to risk aversion in the global markets and surge in crude oil prices.

6. Gold: Gold edged lower on Friday, as a firmer dollar made bullion more expensive for other currency holders, although a pullback in the US Treasury yields limited losses for the safe-haven metal. Spot gold was down 0.2 percent at $1,823.77 per ounce by 0127 GMT. Bullion lost 0.4 percent so far this week. US gold futures were steady at $1,823.20.

7. Bitcoin: Bitcoin slid to a 2-1/2-month low on Thursday after a regulatory probe into crypto exchange Binance added to pressure from Tesla Inc chief Elon Musk's reversing his stance on accepting the digital currency. Bitcoin dropped to $45,700, the lowest since March 1, then steadied at $49,312 in Asia morning trade on Friday.

8. COVID-19 vaccine: A government panel has recommended increasing the gap between two doses of Covishield vaccine to 12-16 weeks and said that pregnant women may be offered the choice to take any vaccine, official sources said on Thursday. Read more

9. Auto industry: Automotive dealers have sought fiscal support, including an extension of GST payment for the next three months, to survive the second wave of COVID-19. As per industry sources, the automotive dealers' body FADA has written to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das, apprising them of the difficulties being faced by the sector while seeking immediate relief measures.

10. Pharma industry: The pharma industry has reached out to the government on concerns over the rising input costs for drugs, according to people in the know. The industry has requested the government to allow it to increase the prices of formulations by 20 percent as a one-time measure. Read more