NIFTY50, SENSEX today: Wall Street cues, RBI MPC decision outcome, key things to know before markets open on December 5

The Indian equity markets are set to open on a flat note on Friday, December 4, as indicated by GIFT NIFTY futures. NIFTY futures at GIFT City in Ahmedabad fell 3 points to 26,183 amid weak cues from Asian markets ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision.

The Indian equity benchmarks snapped their four-day losing streak on Thursday, December 4, led by gains in index heavyweights such as Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Bharti Airtel, ITC, Axis Bank and Mahindra & Mahindra.

The SENSEX rose as much as 499 points from the day's lowest level and NIFTY50 index touched an intraday high of 26,098 after hitting low of 25,938.

The SENSEX ended 159 points higher at 85,265 and NIFTY50 index advanced 48 points to close at 26,034.

Asian markets

Asian markets were trading lower on Friday following a listless session on the Wall Street. Japan's Nikkei fell 1.38%, Singapore's Straits Times declined 0.07%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng tumbled 0.47% and China's Shanghai Composite dropped 0.13%.

Wall Street update

US stocks largely ended on a flat note on Thursday dragged down by losses in Amazon shares which was the biggest drag on the S&P 500 index.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.07%, S&P 500 ended 0.11% higher and tech heavy Nasdaq advanced 0.22%.

FII/DII activity

Foreign institutional investors sold shares worth ₹1,944 crore on Thursday while domestic institutional investors bought shares worth ₹3,661 crore, data from the National Stock Exchange showed.

The FIIs have so far this month sold shares worth ₹13,121 crore and for the calendar year they have been net sellers to the tune of ₹1,56,796 crore, according to the data from National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).

RBI Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decision outcome

The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will announce its decision on repo rate later in the day.

The experts are divided on whether the RBI will go for a rate cut.

Dharmakirti Joshi, Chief Economist at CRISIL, as reported by PTI, said, “We anticipate a 25-basis point cut in the repo rate in December. While growth remains robust, a significant decline in retail inflation in October has created additional room for this adjustment."

On the other hand, Divam Sharma, co-founder and fund manager at Green Portfolio PMS, notes that expectations of a rate cut have picked up recently as inflation has been easing and global monetary conditions are turning more supportive. However, the domestic macro picture is not as straightforward.

"The latest Q2 GDP growth of 8.2% has added a new layer of complexity for the RBI. What stands out is not just the headline number but the broad-based nature of the recovery. Manufacturing has shown a strong turnaround, and the services sector continues to hold up well. Interestingly, the numbers have beaten all the expectations. Together, these point to the economy gaining momentum after nearly six quarters of relatively softer growth," Sharma added.

In such an environment, a rate cut may not necessarily be the most prudent move right now, the fund manager added.

Sonam Srivastava, founder and fund manager at Wright Research PMS, said the upcoming RBI MPC meeting is one of the most finely balanced in recent years.

"Inflation has eased meaningfully, with both headline and core running well below the midpoint of the target band. At the same time, nominal GDP growth has softened, real rates have risen, and global central banks have already moved into an easing cycle. These factors create clear space for the RBI to consider a 25 bps cut as an early move in a broader normalisation path." Srivastava added.

Stocks to watch

The agency has also assigned a Stable Outlook. In addition, S&P raised the long-term issue ratings on the senior unsecured debt issued by the company to 'A-' from 'BBB+'.

Acknowledging that the flight disruptions happening for the past few days are primarily due to misjudgment and planning gaps in implementing the second phase of the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, IndiGo also informed the regulator that there will be more cancellations till December 8 and from that day, there will also be a reduction in services.

Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu held a high-level review meeting to assess the situation of significant flight disruptions and expressed his displeasure at the way IndiGo handled the new FDTL norms implementation despite having ample time.

Sources said IndiGo on Thursday cancelled more than 550 domestic and international flights, and services were delayed at various airports.

Zaggle will acquire Rivpe for ₹22 crore and invest ₹75 crore in the latter's brand Rio.Money to support product enhancement and expansion of consumer payment offerings.

"We wish to inform you, the Board of Directors of Zaggle Prepaid Ocean Services Limited at its meeting held today...approved ...acquisition of 81,429 Equity Shares and 16,407 Compulsory Convertible Preference Shares for consideration up to ₹22 crores from the existing shareholders of Rivpe Technology Private Limited (Rivpe), representing 100% of issued and paid-up capital of Rivpe on a fully diluted basis," the filing said.

Talwandi Sabo Power Ltd (TSPL), Vedanta Power's 1,980 MW supercritical thermal power plant, has set up a biomass manufacturing facility of 500 tonnes per day at Mansa in Punjab.