Before Market Opens: 9 things to know at 9 am on October 18, 2022

US stocks kicked off the trading week on Monday with a rally after Britain reversed course on an economic plan, while Bank of America was the latest financial company to post solid quarterly results, which lifted optimism about the corporate earnings season. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 550.99 points, or 1.86 percent, to 30,185.82, the S&P 500 gained 94.88 points, or 2.65 percent, to 3,677.95 and the Nasdaq Composite added 354.41 points, or 3.43 percent, to 10,675.80.

Shares in the Asia-Pacific traded higher on Tuesday after Wall Street’s rally overnight. The Nikkei 225 rose 1.46 percent and the Topix added 1.23 percent. Japan’s yen touched 149.08 against the dollar and was last trading near 148.90. South Korea’s Kospi was 1.13 percent higher. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.46 percent. In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 gained 1.27 percent.

At 8:20 am, the SGX Nifty was trading 147 points or 0.8 percent higher at 17,462, indicating a gap-up opening for the Indian markets.

Domestic equities extended gains into the second consecutive session on October 17, tracking gains in European stocks which rose on hopes of healthy corporate earnings. Sensex opened 167 points higher at 57,752.50 and vaulted 529 points to an intraday high of 58,449. The index eventually closed 491 points, or 0.85%, higher at 58,410.98 while the Nifty50 closed with a gain of 126 points, or 0.73%, at 17,311.80.

Oil prices rose slightly on Monday in choppy trading as China’s continuation of loose monetary policy was partly offset by fears that high inflation and energy costs could drag the global economy into recession. Brent crude futures last rose 14 cents, or 0.15 percent, to $91.75 a barrel, recovering from a 6.4 percent fall last week. US West Texas Intermediate crude was relatively flat, last down 5 cents, or 0.06 percent, at $85.56 after a 7.6 percent decline last week.

The dollar dipped against a basket of major currencies and sterling jumped on Monday after Britain's new finance minister ditched most of the government's mini-budget, while better than expected earnings from Bank of America helped to boost risk appetite. Investors are also focused on whether the Bank of Japan would intervene as the Japanese currency falls to its weakest level against the dollar in 32 years. Sterling was last up 1.54 percent at $1.1348, after earlier reaching $1.1440, the highest since October 5.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have net sold shares worth ₹372.03 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DIIs) net bought shares worth ₹1,582.24 crore on October 17, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

The rupee ended flat at 82.36 per dollar in the previous session amid gains in the equity market. Analysts point out that the domestic currency has been in a range for the last few sessions, indicating a correction ahead in the coming days.

Gold prices were steady on Tuesday as the dollar faltered, although risks from looming aggressive interest hikes by the US Federal Reserve limited gains in bullion, reported news agency Reuters.