Before Market Opens: 9 things to know at 9 am on January 27, 2023

Wall Street ended a choppy session higher on Thursday as investors grappled with an onslaught of economic data and a string of mixed corporate earnings, all while eyeing the clock as it ticks down toward next week's Federal Reserve monetary policy meeting. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 205.57 points, or 0.61%, to 33,949.41, the S&P 500 gained 44.21 points, or 1.10%, to 4,060.43 and the Nasdaq Composite added 199.06 points, or 1.76%, to 11,512.41.

Stocks in the Asia-Pacific traded higher on Friday as Wall Street’s major indexes gained after the US economy grew more than expected. Government data showed the economy expanded at an annualized rate of 2.9% during the fourth quarter, higher than expectations. Nikkei 225 rose 0.11% in its first hour of trade and the Topix gained 0.18%. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 traded 0.23% higher. In South Korea, the Kospi was flat.

Indian shares fell to their lowest level in over a week on Wednesday, dragged by Adani group stocks after a short-seller raised fresh concerns about the group's debt in a report that had a ripple effect across the market. The Nifty 50 index closed 1.25% lower at 17,891.95, while the S&P BSE Sensex fell 1.27% to 60,205.06. Indian markets were closed on Thursday on account of Republic day.

At 8:20 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 59 points or 0.33 percent higher at 18,013, indicating a positive opening for the Indian markets. 

Oil prices rose more than 1% on Thursday on expectations that global demand will strengthen as top oil importer China reopens its economy and on positive US economic data. Brent futures rose $1.18, or 1.4%, to $87.30 a barrel by 11:42 a.m. EST (1642 GMT), while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude rose $1.12, or 1.4%, to $81.27.

The US economy grew faster than expected in the fourth quarter, but that likely exaggerates the nation's health as a measure of domestic demand rose at its slowest pace in 2-1/2 years, reflecting the impact of higher borrowing costs. The Commerce Department's advance fourth-quarter gross domestic product report on Thursday showed half of the boost to growth came from a sharp rise in inventory held by businesses, some of which is likely unwanted. Gross domestic product increased at a 2.9% annualized rate last quarter. The economy grew at a 3.2% pace in the third quarter. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast GDP would rise at a 2.6% rate.

Foreign institutional investors (FII) have net sold shares worth ₹2,393.94 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DII) have net bought shares worth ₹1,378.49 crore on January 25, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

The rupee rose 13 paise to end at 81.59 per dollar in the previous session on January 25. Meanwhile, the dollar index - which measures the greenback against six major peers, including the euro, yen and British pound- looked on course for its third straight weekly decline.

Gold prices were little changed in early Asian hours on Friday, as traders awaited US inflation data due later in the day to gauge the Federal Reserve's rate-hike stance. Investors are now awaiting US personal consumption expenditures (PCE) data for clues on inflation, reported Reuters.