South Asia

India's stock indexes dipped on Tuesday as a decline in Reliance Industries?and profit taking in TCS and HCLT after the IT service?firms quarterly results weighed down on sentiment. As of 10:24 a.m. IST, the Nifty 50 dropped?0.1%?"to 25,766.7 while the Sensex fell 0.09%?to 83,803.86, Both benchmarks opened up about 0.4% higher. After declining for five straight sessions, they each rose by 0.4% on Monday as expectations grew about the India-U.S. Trade Talks regaining?momentum following a U.S. Envoy's statement that New Delhi would be discussing?trade matters in a phone call later that day. V.K. Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments....

British Columbia's Premier David Eby, who is on a six-day Indian trip, said that the province wants to strengthen its?commercial relations with India, particularly in the areas of liquefied gas, critical minerals, lumber, and technology. Both countries want to rebuild their trade ties following a two-year freezing and diversify supply chains as a reaction to U.S. Tariffs. "Unjustified tariffs from U.S.?impacting B.C. Eby said in an interview that it was more important than ever for workers and businesses to develop strategic relationships with international counterparts. The dates for the Canadian Premier Mark Carney's visit, which will continue until Saturday, have...

After meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz suggested that the European Union could sign a Free Trade Agreement with India as soon as this month. Merz, during a trip to Ahmedabad in western India, said that the presidents of the European Commission and European Council will travel to India to sign the agreement at the end 'January' if the deal is completed by then. Merz, who was visiting India for the first time since his appointment as chancellor, said that they would "in any case" take a major step to ensure this free-trade agreement is...

Germany is looking to work more closely with India on security matters, in order to reduce India's dependence on Russia. On Merz's maiden visit to South Asia, Merz signed a memorandum to this effect, along with agreements on critical minerals and the health sector, as well as an artificial intelligence innovation center. "India and Germany?work together to build resilient, secure and trusted supply chains. Modi said at a joint news conference that the?MoUs signed today will give a new'strength and momentum to our cooperation. India is still closely involved in the security policy of Russia, from where it gets much...

Investors were rattled by renewed worries?over U.S. Tariffs, which led to a fall in Indian equity benchmarks for the fifth straight session. The Nifty 50 dropped 0.75%, to '25,683.3. ', while the Sensex slipped 0.72%, to 83576.24. Each index lost around 2.5% for the week. 15 of 16 major sectors declined during the week. Small-caps fell by 3.1%, while mid-caps dropped 2.6%. According to Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, U.S. president Donald Trump has supported a bipartisan measure targeting countries that do business with Russia. The bill would impose tariffs of up to 500% on imported goods. India is 'the second...

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, met with the President of Somaliland Tuesday. This was 10 days after Israel officially recognised the breakaway region of?the Horn of Africa' as a sovereign and independent state. Somalia has protested the move, saying that it is a threat to its sovereignty. A Somaliland source and regional diplomat have said other countries are preparing to follow their lead and'recognise Somaliland. U.S. U.S. Why is the location of Somaliland strategic? Somaliland is located at the intersection of the Indian Ocean, Red Sea and the Arabian Sea. Its Berbera Port provides access to the busiest shipping routes...

Reliance Industries, HDFC Bank and other heavyweight stocks weighed on the Indian equity benchmarks, which fell from near-record highs Tuesday. Quarterly business updates also influenced stock movements. The Nifty 50 dropped?0.27% at 26,178.7, and the Sensex fell 0.44% at 85,063.34. In two sessions, the indexes have fallen by 0.6% and 0.8%. Ten of 16 major sectors rose. The small-caps and the mid-caps both fell by 0.2%. Reliance Industries' stock, which is the second-heaviest on the benchmarks index, fell 4.5%. This was its steepest percentage drop in a single day since the announcement of the general election results for India, June...

Reliance Industries announced on Tuesday that it does not expect any Russian crude oil deliveries for January, and has not received any such cargoes over the last?three? weeks. The private refiner that used to be India’s largest buyer for Russian oil published a statement in X denying a Bloomberg article based on Kpler information stating that three vessels laden up with Russian oil 'are headed to its Jamnagar refining facility. India became the largest buyer of discounted Russian crude seaborne after the Ukraine War?in 2022. These purchases have sparked a backlash by Western nations who have imposed sanctions on Russia's...

Merchant bankers and investors said that the high yields on corporate bonds and the cancellation of four planned issues in three weeks has led some issuers?to delay the big-ticket fundraising until the next quarter. Companies, including Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency and Indian Bank as well as ONGC Petro Additions, have delayed debt sales of 150 billion rupees (1.68 billion dollars) that were originally scheduled for the December-January quarter. Non-banking finance companies have also chosen the wait until the next quarter before tapping the market. The yields on AAA-rated bonds for corporates have risen by 20-30 basis point this...

Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has continued to criticize and take action against corporate executives, institutions and corporations, even months after assuming office. His actions, from new export deals to freezing university grants, have changed the status quo in the United States between government, law and academia. Trump has publicly criticised a number of influential individuals and entities. NETFLIX Netflix has acquired Warner Bros Discovery’s film studios, streaming service and Warner Bros Discovery’s streaming arm for $72 billion. This gives Netflix control over one of Hollywood’s most iconic assets. After a lengthy bidding war, Netflix's offer of nearly $28 per...

Adani Group, owned by Alphabet, plans to invest $5 billion into Google's India AI Data Centre Project, an executive revealed on Friday. The company is looking to capitalize on the booming demand in data capacity across the world's largest nation. Google announced in October that it would invest $15 Billion over five years in the state of Andhra Pradesh to build an artificial intelligence data center. This is its largest investment in India. AI demands enormous computing power. This is driving demand for data centres with thousands of chips linked together in clusters. Adani Group CFO Jugeshinder Singh stated that...

The companies and government of Andhra Pradesh announced on Wednesday that a joint venture between Reliance Industries and the state will invest $11 billion in five years for the development of 1 gigawatt AI data capacity. Digital Connexion is a joint venture between the Canadian multinational Brookfield Corporation, and the U.S. real estate investment trust Digital Realty. The project will establish a campus of AI-native data centres on 400 acres in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Google announced in October that it would build AI data centres in Visakhapatnam, India, over a five-year period. This will be the largest AI hub the...

Gold fell?on Friday as investors booked profits following three consecutive sessions of record highs. Meanwhile, an apparent softer tone by U.S. president Donald Trump towards the Federal Reserve Chair and Iran dampened demand for safe-haven bullion. As of 0322 GMT, spot gold was down by 0.8%, at $4,584.03 an ounce. The previous session saw bullion reach a record high of $4,642.72. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery fell 1% to $4,576.70. Ilya Spivak is the head of global macro for Tastylive. He said: "Today we are seeing that gold 'is down' a little bit after Trump said we might not...

Silver broke $90 for the first time and gold jumped to an all-time high. The escalating tensions in Iran, coupled with concerns about the Federal Reserve’s autonomy, fueled demand for safe havens, while lower inflation numbers boosted bets on rate cuts. Gold spot rose by 1.1%, to $4,636.78 an ounce, at 1210 GMT. This was after the gold price had reached a session high of $4.639.48. U.S. gold futures for delivery in February rose by 1% to $4643.90. Jamie Dutta is the chief market analyst for?Nemo.money. He said that prices are rising because of "well-known haven characteristics" amid increased geopolitical...

Silver surpassed the $90 mark for the first time, and gold climbed to a near record high. Weaker-than-expected U.S. readings of inflation fueled bets that interest rates will soon drop amid geopolitical uncertainties. As of 0406 GMT the spot gold price rose by 0.9%, to $4,627.95 an ounce, after hitting a record $4,634.33 per ounce on Tuesday. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery? rose 0.8% to $4635.60. Spot silver rose 4.6% to $90.95 per ounce, after breaking $90 for first time. Brian Lan, GoldSilver's Central managing director, said that the data was positive. The inflation rate and unemployment rate in...

BlueScope Steel, an Australian steelmaker, announced on Wednesday that it would pay a special dividend to its shareholders of A$1 ($292.54m) funded by the surplus cash generated from recent asset sales. The excess cash comes from the sale of a stake in the joint venture with India’s Tata Steel and an agreement to sell a 33-hectare?of land in West Dapto, Australia, for A$76million. It also comes from the ongoing residual projects within its properties group which are expected to deliver A$200million in working capital in fiscal 2025 and in fiscal 2026. BlueScope manufactures steel products for construction and infrastructure. The...

Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, India's Foreign Minister, said that he had held discussions with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday. India and the United States set a goal to more than double bilateral trade by 2030 to $500 billion. New Delhi also pledged to purchase?more U.S. defence and energy equipment to narrow the trade gap despite the fact that trade talks failed last year to produce a deal. Investors who were waiting for progress in the two-way talks became frightened by the failure to reach a deal. "Just finished a great conversation with Secretary Rubio. Jaishankar wrote in a blog...

The price of gold hit a new record on Tuesday as U.S. inflation data fueled bets that the Federal Reserve will cut rates this year. As of 11:21 am, spot gold rose 0.4% to $4.609.69 an ounce. ET (1621 GMT), after a session high of $4634.33. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose by 0.1% to $4 617.90. David Meger said that the CPI data was a factor in the slight 'positive' tone in the market. This is because the CPI data indicates a greater likelihood of future Fed rate cuts. The core Consumer Price Index for the U.S. The...

A government discussion document stated that India was considering revising the weights used in calculating its Index of Industrial Production to "better reflect" changes to the economy. The proposal is part of a larger federal "push" to overhaul key economic data by updating methods and revising base-years in order to better reflect the current economic structure. In May, the IIP will change its base year from 2011-12 to 2022-2023. In India's 2011-12 IIP, manufacturing is about 78% of the base. Mining is 14%, and electricity is 8%. This reflects their respective shares in industrial activities. The Statistics Ministry proposes to...

Gold hit a new record on Tuesday as U.S. data on inflation fueled?bets that the Federal Reserve will cut rates this year. Meanwhile, persistent geopolitical and economic uncertainty drove demand for safe-haven assets. Silver also reached a new peak. As of 09:50 am, spot gold rose 0.8% per ounce to $4631.19 ET (1450 GMT) followed a session high of $4634.33. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose by 0.6% to $4641.30. David Meger said that the CPI data was a factor in the slight positive market tone. This is because the CPI data indicates a greater likelihood of Fed rate...

Investor caution before key inflation data slowed the upward momentum. Gold prices were mostly stable near their all-time high on Tuesday. Supported by concerns about Russia's intensified attacks?on?Ukraine?and?the situation in Iran?, gold prices were relatively steady. As of 1134 GMT spot gold was trading 0.2% lower, at $4,586.15 an ounce, after hitting a new record high of $4629.94 the previous session. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery fell 0.4% to $4,595.10. "A modest improvement?in U.S. dollars, driven by hawkish remarks from a Fed official and investors' attention?on the U.S. CPI release later in the session act as a headwind for...

Gold prices were largely stable on Tuesday. They traded below the record $4,600/ounce price?reached in the previous session amid increased geopolitical uncertainty and economic instability as investors booked profits. As of 0357 GMT spot gold was little changed at $4.593.81 an ounce, while U.S. futures for gold delivery in February fell 0.3% to $4.602.70. Kyle Rodda is a senior analyst at Capital.com. He said, "There are probably some people who want to make a quick profit. But as we saw yesterday, the dip during Asia hours can be purchased pretty quickly." Bullion climbed over 2% in the previous session to...

On Monday, gold reached a record-high of $4,600, and?silver set a new high, as the?criminal investigation?by Trump's administration into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell sent back investors into the asset seen as a haven. Gold spot jumped by 1.7%, to $4,584.12 an ounce, at 1159 GMT. It had earlier reached a record-high of $4,600.33. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery gained 2.1% to $4,595. Zain Vawda is an analyst at MarketPulse, by OANDA. He said: "With the Fed’s independence openly contested now, the ‘political risk’ discount normally reserved for emerging markets has bled into the U.S. Dollar, driving investors towards...

On Monday, gold prices rose by about 2%, reaching an all-time record of $4,600 per troy ounce. Silver also broke a new record, after the Trump administration launched a criminal investigation into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. Gold spot jumped by 1.9%, to $4,596.05 an ounce, at 0931 GMT. It had earlier reached a session high of $4600.33. U.S. Gold Futures for 'February Delivery' gained 2.3%, reaching $4,606.20. Zain Vawda is a?analyst with MarketPulse, by OANDA. He said that the Fed's independency has been openly questioned, and the "political risks" discount, which was usually reserved for emerging markets, is now...