GIFT Nifty:

The GIFT Nifty December futures contract is currently flat, indicating a muted start for the Nifty 50.

Economy:

India's Consumer Price Index (CPI) inflation for the month of November 2024 eased to 5.48% as against 6.21% in October 2024. The retail inflation has fallen within the Reserve Bank of India’s target range of 2-6%.

The Index of Industrial Production saw a growth rate of 3.5% in October 2024, as against 3.1% in September.

Institutional Flows:

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth Rs 3,560.01 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) were net buyers to the tune of Rs 2,646.65 crore in the Indian equity market on 12 December 2024, provisional data showed.

According to NSDL data, FPIs have bought shares worth over Rs 18016.91 crore (so far) in the secondary market during December 2024. This follows their sale of shares worth Rs 39315.78 crore in November 2024.

Global Markets:

Asian equities traded mixed on Friday, with investors taking a cautious stance ahead of the Federal Reserve's upcoming policy meeting next week.

China's top leaders have announced plans for further stimulus measures to bolster the country's economy. This decision, made during the annual meeting of the Chinese Communist Party and the cabinet, involves increasing the budget deficit, borrowing more, and lowering interest rates. This aggressive approach is a departure from previous years of weaker growth and declining consumer demand. The government aims to maintain economic growth and stability in employment and prices for the upcoming year.

US stocks closed lower on Thursday as Treasury yields climbed following a hotter-than-expected inflation report. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.53%, the S&P 500 index lost 0.54%, and the NASDAQ Composite index declined 0.65%.

While US consumer price index data released on Wednesday was largely in line with expectations, producer prices rose more than anticipated in November, increasing 0.4% last month, ahead of the expected 0.2% gain. In the 12 months through November, the PPI shot up 3.0% after increasing 2.6% in October. This suggests underlying inflationary pressures may persist.

Adobe Systems Incorporated stock plummeted over 14% after the software giant issued a disappointing annual sales outlook. The company's recent efforts to incorporate artificial intelligence into its offerings appear to be taking longer than expected to generate significant returns.

Domestic Market:

The domestic equity benchmarks ended with modest losses on Thursday. After hitting the day's high of 24,675.25 in early trade, the Nifty slipped as the session progressed to end below the 24,550 mark. Trading was volatile due to expiry of weekly index options on the NSE today. Traders were cautious ahead of retail inflation data outcome today, and Friday’s WPI inflation data. Barring IT sector, most sectoral indices on he NSE ended in the red with FMCG index shedding 1%. The S&P BSE Sensex declined 236.18 points or 0.29% to 81,289.96. The Nifty 50 index fell 93.10 points or 0.38% to 24,548.70.