Today’s agenda:
China’s Evergrande Group has supplied funds to pay interest on a dollar bond. The payment will bring some relief to investors and regulators worried about the wider fallout from a messy default and contagion hitting global financial markets elsewhere. Japan’s Nikkei rose on Evergrande’s debt payment, recouping early losses.
Oil prices will stay on our radar as they resumed their climb on Friday on continued tightness in U.S. supply. Brent crude futures climbed 24 cents, or 0.3%, to $84.85 a barrel.
In India, the Union Cabinet on Thursday approved PM GatiShakti National Master Plan, including implementation, monitoring and support mechanism, for providing multi-modal connectivity. Petrol and diesel prices were hiked again on on Thursday by 35 paise per litre each.
Capital markets regulator Sebi has asked investment advisers to refrain from dealing in digital gold, an unregulated financial product. – John Xavier
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Asian markets update | Sensex opens
Indian indices opened higher after closing on a weak note yesterday. The Sensex opened at 61,044.54 up 121.04 points after plunging 0.55% in the previous session. Similarly, the Nifty opened at 18,230.70, up 52.6 points after dropping 0.48% yesterday.
Major Asian stock indices rose in the morning trade, as the debt-laden China Evergrande Group sent funds for a $83.5 million bond interest payment before the October 23 deadline, averting a default.
Evergrande’s shares in Hong Kong rose 5.04%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.36%. Chinese blue chips gained 0.3%, with the CSI300 Real Estate Index rising 2.5%.
MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan edged down 0.1%. Japan’s Nikkei rose 0.64% and Topix advanced 0.32%. South Korea’s Kospi dipped 0.04%.
In U.S., the S&P 500 rose 0.30% to a new record closing high of 4,549.78, the Nasdaq Composite also surged 0.62% to 15,215.70, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.02% to close at 35,603.08.
---- Edited by John Xavier
(With inputs from Reuters, PTI and other news agencies.)