After a stellar run on Monday, the Indian equity benchmarks, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty, are set for a flat opening on Tuesday, taking muted cues from the global markets as caution prevailed ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole symposium. At 8:10 a.m., the GIFT Nifty futures were down 3 points at 24,960, indicating a muted opening for the Sensex and the Nifty.

Global investors are hoping that Fed Chair Jerome Powell will provide clarity on the economic outlook and the central bank’s policy framework at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium on August 25, 2023. The U.S. central bank faces a dilemma of whether to keep interest rates unchanged in September in the face of rising inflation or consider a cut amid signs of a weakening labour market.

On Monday, the Indian equity markets ended on a strong note amid hopes of a major GST revamp following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day address. The sentiment was further lifted by S&P’s upgrade of India’s sovereign credit rating to investment grade, the first time in 18 years and the highest in 35 years, and optimism around a likely pause on American tariffs after some progress in the U.S.-Russia talks. The BSE Sensex closed 676 points higher at around 81,274, while the NSE Nifty50 ended at 24,877, up 246 points or 1%.

U.S. stocks end flat as investors await Fed signals

Wall Street closed largely unchanged on Monday as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss a potential peace deal with Russia. Market participants also awaited cues from the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole symposium, while keeping a watch on upcoming earnings from Walmart, Home Depot, Target, and others to gauge the impact of trade uncertainty and inflation expectations on U.S. consumers.

At the close, the S&P 500 was down 0.01%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.08%, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.03%.

Asian stocks muted ahead of Jackson Hole meet

Asian equities witnessed lacklustre trade on Tuesday, mirroring the subdued trend in the U.S. markets, as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s address at the annual Jackson Hole symposium. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was down 0.1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, Taiwan Weighted Index, and South Korea’s KOSPI declined in the range of 0.2% to 0.4%.

Among others, Singapore’s Straits Times and China’s Shanghai Composite were trading marginally higher. In contrast, Australia’s ASX 200 ended 0.62% lower.

Stocks to watch:

Aditya Infotech, GNG Electronics: The newly listed companies are set to release their June quarter earnings report today.

Bluestone Jewellery: The shares of the jewellery firm, which garnered a weak response for its IPO, are set to make their debut on the BSE and the NSE today.

ONGC: ONGC Energy Centre Trust (OECT), the R&D arm of ONGC, has signed an agreement with Engineers India Ltd (EIL) to set up a Helium Recovery Demonstration Plant at ONGC’s Kuthalam gas collection station in Tamil Nadu’s Cauvery Asset.

Vedanta: The company’s board of directors will meet on August 21 to consider a second interim dividend for FY25-26.

Reliance Industries: Reliance Consumer Products, the FMCG arm of Reliance Industries, has entered the functional and healthy beverages category by acquiring a majority stake in a joint venture with Naturedge Beverages. The venture will focus on launching a portfolio of herbal and natural drinks.

Hindustan Zinc: The board of the Vedanta subsidiary has cleared the establishment of a 10 MTPA tailings reprocessing plant under its “2X growth plan” to double capacity.

Trent: The Tata group retail arm’s youth-focused fashion brand Burnt Toast has forayed into Gujarat with the opening of its first store in Surat.

Nuvoco Vistas Corporation: The company’s board has approved raising up to ₹600 crore through the private placement of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) in one or more tranches.

Tata Steel: The steel maker’s subsidiary Tata Steel Advanced Materials (TSAML) has divested its entire 90% equity and 100% preference stake in Ceramat (CPL) to Lionstead Applied Materials, part of Lionstead Ventures LLP.

Sandhar Technologies: The company has entered into a share subscription and shareholders agreement with Clean Renewable Energy KK 1A, acquiring a 4.51% stake in the SPV for ₹2.72 crore.

Rainbow Children’s Medicare: The company has completed the acquisition of a 76% equity stake and 100% NCRPS in Pratiksha Women & Child Care Hospital.

Goldiam International: The company has allotted 61.22 lakh shares to qualified institutional buyers—including Morgan Stanley, LC Pharos Multi Strategy Fund, Nova Global Opportunities Fund, and Saint Capital Fund—at ₹330 per share, aggregating to ₹202 crore.

DRC Systems India: The board of the company will meet on August 26 to consider fundraising proposals and other business matters.

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