10 things you should know before opening bell on Feb 21
Wall Street | Wall Street futures rallied on news that US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed in principle to hold a summit on the Ukraine crisis. S&P 500 stock futures reversed out of early losses to trade 0.4 percent higher. Nasdaq futures edged up 0.2 percent, having been down more than 1 percent earlier. US markets are on holiday on Monday but futures still traded.Asian Equities | Asian share markets pared sharp early losses on Monday as a glimmer of hope emerged for a diplomatic solution to the Russian-Ukraine standoff, though there remained plenty of devil in the detail. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan pared their losses to be down 0.4 percent while Japan’s Nikkei halved its drop to be down 0.9 percent.D-Street | Indian equity benchmark indices ended in red for the third straight day on Friday amid volatility as investors continued to be on edge about the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine. With SXG Nifty Futures trading lower, benchmark indices are likely to open in the red on Monday.Crude Oil | Oil prices gained more than $1 in early trade on Monday on rising jitters over a potential conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with the US and European Union making clear Russia would face sanctions if it invaded its neighbour. Brent crude futures were up $1.34, or 1.4 percent, at $94.88 a barrel at 2312 GMT after hitting a high of $95.00 in early trade.Rupee | The rupee spurted by 40 paise, its biggest single-day gain in over three months, to settle at a more than two-week high of 74.66 against the US dollar on Friday in hopes of a diplomatic solution to the East-West standoff over Ukraine.Gold Prices | Gold prices fell from a more than eight-month high hit earlier on Monday, as safe-haven demand eased after the US president agreed to meet his Russian counterpart over the Ukraine crisis. Cryptocurrency | Bitcoin’s market dominance rose 0.30 percent to 42.03 percent and the currency was trading at $40,010.80 on Friday. In rupee terms, Bitcoin fell 1.31 percent to trade at Rs 33,84,999, while Ethereum dipped 1.44 percent to Rs 2,40,000.Russia-Ukraine Crisis | US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have agreed in principle to a summit over Ukraine, the US and French leaders said, offering a possible path out from one of the most dangerous European crises in decades.Federal Reserve rate hike| Federal Reserve officials on Friday squelched what had been rising market expectations for an aggressive initial response to 40-year-high US inflation, signalling that steady interest rate hikes should be enough to do the trick.Japan’s February Factory Activity | Japan’s manufacturing activity expanded at the slowest pace in five months in February as output contracted, underscoring the prolonged impact that global supply chain disruptions are having on the world’s third-largest economy.
