3:30 pm: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to brief media after federal budget at New Delhi.
LIVECHAT-CHARTING FX Take a look at the FX charts with Reuters technical analyst Martin Miller at 4:30 pm. To join the conversation, click on the link: https://forms.thomsonreuters.com/communities/ INDIA TOP NEWS Indian budget to try and ease pain from cash crunch Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will likely boost spending and ease back on cutting the deficit when he presents his fourth budget on Wednesday, as he seeks to lift growth hit by the government's drive to purge the economy of "black money". To read a Reuters poll on the budget, click on the link: http://www.reuters.com/article/india-budget-idINKBN15F0JA India plays down hit to growth from PM Modi's cash crunch India's growth rate will slow by up to half a percentage point due to the government's decision to scrap high-value banknotes, the top finance ministry economist said on Tuesday, challenging independent estimates of a far bigger impact.
ICICI Bank Q3 net profit falls 19 percent, bad loans rise ICICI Bank, India's No.2 lender by assets, said its third-quarter net profit fell 19 percent as bad loans rose, although the profit decline was smaller than expected.
IndiGo owner Q3 net profit falls 25 percent on high fuel costs, lower yields InterGlobe Aviation, owner of India's largest airline IndiGo, suffered its biggest fall in quarterly net profit, hit by high fuel costs and lower yields, as competition and the government's demonetisation move put fares under pressure.
Indian IT sector warns against U.S. visa bill India's IT lobby warned on Tuesday that a bill before the U.S. Congress aimed at imposing tougher visa rules unfairly targets some of its members and will not solve a U.S. labour shortage in technology and engineering.
Indian govt report weighs idea of cash handouts to fight poverty Handing cash to Indians rather than providing the poor with cheap food or guaranteed jobs would nearly eradicate poverty but at a cost of 4 to 5 percent of gross domestic product, a government report said on Tuesday.
Vodafone-Idea deal could speed up India telecoms consolidation A proposed merger between Vodafone's India operation and Idea Cellular would create a market leader in India's crowded and hyper-competitive telecoms sector, forcing smaller players into two likely options: merge or exit altogether.
GLOBAL TOP NEWS Trump picks conservative judge Gorsuch for U.S. Supreme Court President Donald Trump on Tuesday nominated Neil Gorsuch for a lifetime job on the U.S. Supreme Court, picking the 49-year-old federal appeals court judge to restore the court's conservative majority and help shape rulings on divisive issues such as abortion, gun control, the death penalty and religious rights.
Apple defies Wall Street with strong revival in iPhone sales Apple Inc reclaimed the throne as the world's top smartphone seller for the first time in five years on Tuesday, beating out rival Samsung in units shipped for the holiday quarter and boosting revenues with a strong showing for its new, top-of-the-line iPhone 7 Plus.
Japan final Jan manufacturing PMI shows fastest expansion in almost 3 years Japanese manufacturing activity expanded in January at the fastest pace in almost three years as export orders surged, a private survey on Wednesday, suggesting that overseas demand has rebounded strongly.
LOCAL MARKETS OUTLOOK (As reported by NewsRise) The SGX Nifty Futures were at 8,601.00, up 0.30 pct from its previous close.
The Indian rupee will likely open higher against the dollar, as President Donald Trump's critique of U.S. trading partners' currency policies stoked speculation the nation may actively seek to weaken the dollar.
Indian sovereign bonds will likely open steady, as investors keenly await the government's market borrowing and fiscal deficit for the next next financial year in the budget to be unveiled later today. The yield on the benchmark 6.97 pct bond maturing in 2026 is likely to trade in a 6.39 pct-6.42 pct band till the budget announcement today. The bond had closed at 103.98 rupees, yielding 6.41 pct, yesterday.
GLOBAL MARKETS The S&P 500 fell on Tuesday for a fourth consecutive session, weighed by sectors sensitive to economic growth amid disappointing earnings and lingering concern over the priorities of the Trump administration.
The dollar was put on the defensive in Asia after the Trump administration accused Germany and Japan of devaluing their currencies to gain a trade advantage, fuelling a risk-off mood that also kept stocks subdued.
U.S. Treasury prices gained on Tuesday after President Donald Trump expressed concern about the value of the dollar, sending it lower and raising demand for safe haven U.S. bonds.
Oil dipped, weighed by ongoing high supplies despite an OPEC-led production cut, but prices remained within a narrow range that has bound the market since late January.
Gold held firm after hitting a one-week high in the previous session, as traders awaited a decision on interest rates by the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to keep policy on hold.
CLOSE FII INVESTMENTS EQUITIES DEBT PNDF spot 67.80/67.83 January 31 -$78.97 mln $23.57 mln 10-yr bond yield 6.7 pct Month-to-date -$72.91 mln -$112.08 mln Year-to-date - - For additional data: India govt bond market volumes Stock market reports Non-deliverable forwards data Corporate debt stories [IN CORPD] Local market closing/intraday levels [IN SNAPSHOT] Monthly inflows [INFLOWS RTRS TABLE IN] ($1 = 67.87 Indian rupees) (Erum Khaled in Bengaluru)
