Indices open higher as rupee strengthens, inflation drops

Tuesday,   14-Aug-2018   09:31 AM (IST)

Benchmark indices opened higher after rupee gained and India’s retail inflation rate eased in July, strengthening views that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will keep interest rates on hold at its review in October after raising them for a second straight meeting on August 1. At 9:15 AM, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 37,753, up 108 points while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 11,389, up 33 points. In July, consumer prices rose 4.17 per cent from a year earlier, compared with a downwardly revised 4.92 per cent in June, the Statistics Ministry said on Monday. Meanwhile, the rupee strengthened at open today,  moving away from its all-time lows after the Indian currency on Monday nosedived by Rs 1.09 to close at an all-time low of Rs 69.92 against the US dollar, bowing to a global rout in currencies on fears of an economic crisis in Turkey. It was the biggest single-day fall in almost five years. Stock-specific action will also continue with over 500 companies likely to announce their June-quarter results today.  Globally, Asian markets tried to regain their footing on Tuesday as tremors from the collapse of the Turkish lira ebbed a little and Wall Street proved resilient to the shockwaves. Japan's Nikkei led the early running with a gain of 1.0 per cent, while Australia added 0.4 per cent. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was flat having found support above the July low of 525.52.