Before Market Opens: From US Fed to RBI MPC; 9 things to know at 9 am on February 8, 2023

US stocks rallied to a convincingly higher close on Tuesday, but trade was choppy as investors digested comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell about how long the central bank might need to tame inflation. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 265.67 points, or 0.78 percent, to 34,156.69, the S&P 500 gained 52.92 points, or 1.29 percent, to 4,164 and the Nasdaq Composite added 226.34 points, or 1.9 percent, to 12,113.79.

Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Wednesday, as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell overnight acknowledged that inflation is declining — a sign the central bank may soon pause its rate hikes. The Nikkei 225 fell 0.34 percent, while the Topix gained 0.12 percent. The Kospi in South Korea rose 0.68 percent.

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das will unveil the outcome of the crucial monetary policy review, the last one for this fiscal, and the first one in this calendar year later today. Most experts feel that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will hike the key policy rate by 25 basis points,.

At 8:20 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 69 points or 0.4 percent higher at 17,799, indicating a strong opening for the Indian markets. 

Domestic equity benchmarks the Sensex and the Nifty closed in the negative territory for the second consecutive session on February 7, tracking weak global cues as investors avoided riskier equities awaiting Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech later today to get a cue on the rate hike trajectory. Sensex closed 221 points, or 0.37 percent, lower at 60,286.04. The Nifty50 closed the day at 17,721.50, down 43 points, or 0.24 percent.

Oil prices climbed more than 3 percent on Tuesday after the head of the US central bank eased market concerns over interest rate hikes, while recovering demand in China also boosted prices. Brent crude futures were up $2.70, or 3.3 percent, to $83.69 a barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose $3.03, or 4.1 percent, to $77.14 per barrel.

oreign institutional investors (FII) sold shares worth ₹2,559.96 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DII) purchased shares worth ₹639.82 crore on February 7, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

The rupee rose 3 paise to close at 82.70 per dollar in the previous session amid weakness in the domestic equity market and the dollar's rise. Meanwhile, The dollar index retreated from a one-month peak hit in the previous session.

Gold prices edged higher on Wednesday, as the US dollar eased after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell did not revert to a more hawkish stance despite last week's stunning jobs report.