Stock Market LIVE Updates, Thursday, September 19, 2024: Indian shares climbed to a record high on Thursday, led by information technology stocks after the US Federal Reserve kicked off its monetary easing cycle with a large half percentage point rate reduction.
At 12 PM, the BSE Sensex was at 83,110, up 162 points, or 0.20 per cent, while the Nifty 50 was at 25,394, up 16 points, or 0.07 per cent.
The Nifty 50 index gained 0.54 per cent at 25,513 points, while the S&P BSE Sensex added 0.63 per cent at 83,467, as of 11:00 AM.
On Thursday, IT companies, which earn a significant share of their revenue from the US, jumped 1 per cent.
Twelve of the 13 major sectors logged gains. The broader, domestically focussed small- and mid-caps rose about 0.4 per cent each.
Global Market Moves
Meanwhile, overnight in the US, the S&P 500 hit a record high overnight and although it closed slightly lower, futures rose 0.67 per cent in Asia trade.
Nasdaq futures were up 1 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei jumped 2.5 per cent and stock markets in Australia and Indonesia hit record highs.
The Fed lowered its window for the benchmark policy rate by 50 basis points to 4.75-5 per cent, where traders had been leaning before the decision.
Ten-year Treasury yields have climbed nearly eight basis points from a day earlier to 3.719 per cent, while gold shot to a record high just shy of $2,600 an ounce, before easing back to steady at $2,559.
The Fed’s cut is expected to support spending and the US economy, and encourage other central banks to cut rates.
Policymakers’ adjusted their median rates projection downwards, compared with their outlook in July, but Fed chair Jerome Powell emphasised flexibility.
“I do not think that anyone should look at this and say, oh, this is the new pace,” Powell told reporters after the outsized cut was announced.
“We’re recalibrating policy down over time to a more neutral level. And we’re moving at the pace that we think is appropriate, given developments in the economy.”
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan climbed 0.3 per cent. Hong Kong and China logged broad gains on the view that Beijing is more likely to roll out stimulus now that the Fed has moved.
Chinese bond yields fell. South Korean markets returned from holidays with a thud after a downbeat Morgan Stanley note, which halved SK Hynix’s target price.
Oil prices fell and benchmark Brent crude futures were last down 0.3 per cent at $73.42 a barrel.
Around the region, lower US rates in theory give emerging markets leeway to cut their policy rates to support growth. Bank Indonesia moved a few hours before the Fed, with a 25-basis-point cut on Wednesday.
The Bank of England meets later on Thursday and is seen holding rates at 5 per cent, especially after inflation figures showed services inflation picked up in August.
The Bank of Japan sets policy on Friday, and is expected to stand pat but line up future hikes, perhaps as soon as October.