Defence stocks, especially Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), are likely to be in focus after the crash of an IAF Tejas fighter jet during an aerial display at the Dubai Air Show on November 21. The aircraft went down in a ball of fire, killing the lone pilot. This marks the second accident involving the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft in under two years, a development that could weigh on sentiment around defence manufacturers in today’s trade.
Last week on November 21, key Wall Street indices rallied on increased bets that the US Federal Reserve will cut rates in December. According to CME's FedWatch Tool, 71.50 per cent of market participants are expected the Fed to cut rates by 25 basis points (bps), bringing it lower to the 3.50-3.75 per cent range.
The Dow Jones rose 1.08 per cent, the S&P 500 gained 0.98 per cent, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.88 per cent.
Asian stock markets traded upbeat in early trade on November 24, tracking cues from the Wall Street. The Hong Kong-based Hang Seng rose 1.22 per cent, South Korea's Kospi was up nearly 1 per cent, and Australia's ASX index was up 1.12 per cent. However, China's CSI 300 traded lower by 0.60 per cent.
USD vs INR
The Indian rupee (INR) opened stronger against the US dollar (USD) on November 24. The USD/INR pair slipped 0.56 per cent to 89.11 in early trade. The pair moved within a narrow band, hitting an intraday low of 89.05 and a high of 89.64 so far.
Crude oil prices recovered in early trade on November 24 after logging the biggest weekly fall since October, as traders weighed the prospect of a Ukraine-Russia peace deal that could increase crude flows into an already well-supplied market.
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices traded 0.48 per cent higher at $58.09 per barrel, while the Brent crude oil was flat-to-positive, up 0.08 per cent at $61.99 per barrel.
This is a developing story...