Three reasons why market tanked over 4% from lifetime highs in 7 sessions

STOCK MARKET - With the benchmark indices extending losses for the fifth straight session on Friday, the market seemed to have entered the correction zone after a record run of the last few months. The S&P BSE Sensex and the Nifty50 dipped over 4% from the record highs they hit on August 2.

On Friday, the Sensex tanked as much as 336 points to 31194, while the broader Nifty50 slipped 115 points to 9,704 in intraday trade. Both the indices had hit their respective lifetime highs of 32,686 and 10,137 on August 2.

Below are three reasons that spooked the investors on Dalal Street:
1) Geopolitical tensions

The ongoing border dispute in Doklam between India and China, and the war of words between the heads of US and North Korea have made investors jittery about the outlook of market. Overnight, Wall Street closed sharply lower after US President Donald Trump made another provocative statement against North Korea, saying that his threat to unleash “fire and fury” on the country was not “tough enough”. Taking lead from Wall Street, Asian markets also slumped on Friday. Meanwhile, the standoff between Indian and China continued in Doklam with little signs of de-escalation of military force from either side.

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7 stocks from BSE Smallcap index rally over 50% in July

STOCK MARKET - Parsvnath Developers, GTL Infrastructure, McNally Bharat, Aksh Optifibre, Gujarat NRE Coke, Himachal Futuristic Communications (HFCL) and GVK Infrastructure & Power are the seven stocks from the S&P BSE Smallcap index that have rallied by more than 50% thus far in July.

At 12:05 pm: the S&P BSE Smallcap index was trading at 16,103, gaining 4.5% during the current month. On comparison, the S&P BSE Midcap index up 4.7%, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex up 4.9%, set to post its record monthly gain since March 2016 (up 10.2%).

As many as 48 stocks from the smallcap index have surged more than 25% thus far in July. The list includes Tinplate Company, Sterlite Technologies, Saregama India, Thirumalai Chemicals, Rico Auto Industries and Jubilant FoodWorks are among those which soared between 40% and 49%.

Foreign portfolio investors (Rs 2,662 crore) and domestic institutional investors (Rs 3,018 crore) have collectively pumped in net amount of Rs 5,680 crore in equity market, the stock exchange data shows.

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Sebi issues new bond regulations to reduce corporates' funding sources

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STOCK MARKET - The new regulations of Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on foreign holdings of rupee-denominated corporate bonds will reduce options for companies to diversify their funding sources, says a report.

Last week, the market regulator had said that foreign purchases of rupee-denominated corporate notes would only be permitted through auction once the foreign holdings reached 95 per cent of the cap.

"New, tighter regulations on foreign holdings of rupee-denominated corporate bonds and offshore issuance will reduce options for companies to diversify their funding sources, at least temporarily," Fitch Ratings said in a report.

The new norms will also prevent the use of certain complex transaction structures, which have recently gained popularity among corporate issuers, it said.

At present, the foreign portfolio investors can invest up to Rs 2,44,300 crore ($ 51 billion) in corporate bonds issued by domestic companies.

Foreign ownership is already above 95 per cent of the cap, which means these restrictions have come into effect, the report said.

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ICICI Bank slips post 8% fall in June-quarter profit

STOCK MARKET - ICICI Bank fell as much as 2.9% in today’s trade after the private lender reported 8% fall in June quarter profit to Rs 2,049 crore (YoY), in line with Street expectations. The drop in profit was impacted by higher provisions and subdued growth in other income & operating income.

Slow growth in net interest income also hit profitability but the asset quality was stable during the quarter with sharp fall in slippages. Slippages for the quarter stood at Rs 4,975 crore, which were much lower than Rs 11,289 crore reported in Q4FY17.

Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, explained that the dip in profit was on account of the fact that exchange rate gain related to overseas operations, which was available in the year-ago quarter, was no longer permitted to be accounted for as income from the reporting quarter and ICICI Prudential Life had moved to dividend payments on half-yearly basis from quarterly basis.

Asset quality of the country's largest private sector lender was stable during the quarter. Gross non-performing assets increased to 7.99% from 7.89% but net NPA declined to 4.86% from 4.89% (QoQ).

Kochar said that the gross additions to NPAs at Rs 4,976 crore in the June quarter were the lowest in the last seven quarters, reiterating the bank's guidance that incremental bad loans in the current financial year to March will be lower than the last financial year.

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YES Bank stock hits record high on 32% increase in Q1 net

STOCK MARKET - YES Bank surged 4.48 per cent to Rs 1,789.35 at 14:10 IST on BSE, with the stock extending Wednesday's rally triggered by a good Q1 result.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 157.78 points or 0.49 per cent at 32,540.24

On the BSE, 6.28 lakh shares were traded on the counter so far as against the average daily volumes of 2.47 lakh shares in the past quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 1,796.50 in intraday trade so far, which is a record high for the counter. The stock hit a low of Rs 1,741 so far during the day. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 1,091.25 on 26 December 2016.

The large-cap bank has equity capital of Rs 457.64 crore. Face value per share is Rs 10.

YES Bank's net profit rose 31.93 per cent to Rs 965.52 crore on 21.48 per cent growth in total income to Rs 5,785.96 crore in the first quarter (Q) of the current financial year (FY) over Q1FY17. The result was announced during market hours on Wednesday when the stock gained 6.1 per cent to settle at Rs 1,712.55.

Meanwhile, YES Bank's board at its meeting held on Wednesday approved a 5-for-1 stock split of equity shares.

The bank's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) stood at Rs 1,364.38 crore as on June 30, 2017, as against Rs 2,018.56 crore as on March 31, 2017, and Rs 844.56 crore as on June 30, 2016.

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Markets end at fresh closing highs amid earnings optimism; Airtel, RIL gain

STOCK MARKET - The benchmark indices, S&P BSE Sensex and Nifty50 settled the day on record closing highs on Monday as investors remianed optimistic on the June corporate results. Markets also shrugged off the global weakness with Asian markets ending mixed ahead of the joint OPEC and non-OPEC ministerial meeting later in the day.

Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) retained India's economic growth projections at 7.2% in 2017-18, up slightly from 7.1% in the previous year. However, the growth would accelerate to 7.7% in 2018-19, IMF said.

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STOCK MARKET - Unitech, JP Associates, GVK Power, Shree Renuka Sugars hit 52-week high

STOCK MARKET - Unitech, Jaiprakash Associates, Jaypee Infratech, Shree Renuka Sugars, South Indian Bank and Future Enterprises are among 30 stocks from the S&P BSE Smallcap index hitting their respective 52-week high on BSE on Monday.

At 10:41 am; the S&P BSE Smallcap index was up 0.60% at 16,088, as compared to 0.55% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. The index hit a new high of 16,097 on BSE in intra-day trade today.

Jaypee Infratech, Unitech, GVK Power & Infrastructure, Shree Renuka Sugars and Jaiprakash Associates have rallied more than 50% in the last one month.

GVK Power & Infrastructure has soared 17% to Rs 11.69, extending its Friday’s 20% surge on the BSE. On July 21, 2017 Equity Intelligence India Private Limited [P M S] bought 18.8 million shares representing 1.19% stake in GVK Power & Infrastructure at Rs 9.61 per share on the NSE, the bulk deal data shows. Porinju Veliyath, ace investor, is the Founder & CEO of Equity Intelligence India.

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STOCK MARKET - Bajaj Finance hits new high on robust June quarter numbers

STOCK MARKET - Bajaj Finance hit a new high of Rs 1,578, up 4% on BSE in intra-day trade, after the company reported a better than expected 42% year on year (YoY) jump in its standalone net profit at Rs 602 crore for the quarter ended June 2017 (Q1FY18). The company had profit of Rs 424 crore in the same quarter year ago.

The calculated net interest income (revenue from operations minus finance cost) grew 48% to Rs 2,072 crore against Rs 1,397 crore in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal.

Analysts on an average had expected profit of Rs 557 crore on net interest income of Rs 1,782 crore.

The company’s assets under management (AUM) as on Q1FY18 was up 39% to Rs 68,883 crore from Rs 49,608 crore in Q1FY17.

Gross non-performing assets (NPA) as a percentage of gross advances stood at 1.7% in June quarter against 1.68% in March quarter. Net NPA stood at 0.53% against 0.44% in previous quarter. Gross NPA and Net NPA as of June 2016, was at 1.47% and 0.41% respectively.

At 12:31 pm; the stock was up 3.5% at Rs 1,566 against 0.62% rise in the S&P BSE Sensex. The trading volumes on the counter more than doubled A combined 1.34 million shares changed hands on the BSE and NSE so far.

STOCK MARKET NEWS: Sensex ends above 31,800, Nifty over 9,800 for first time ever; ONGC up 2%

STOCK MARKET NEWS - Benchmark indexes ended marginally higher but eked out to record closing highs on Wednesday with Nifty50 ending above the 9,800 mark for the first time ever led by oil & gas and energy stocks, which rose on the back of higher crude prices. Gains were however capped as investors remained on edge ahead of the June CPI data.

June CPI is expected to have cooled to a record low of 1.7%, according to a Reuters poll, easing further from May's 2.18%. A lower inflation for the month of June will intensify the pressure on RBI to cut rates in the next monetary policy review meet.

S&P BSE Sensex ended at new closing high of at 31,804, up 57 points for the day. Nifty50, on the other hand, also achieved new milestone, setting at new high of 9,816, up 30 points.

Broader market outperformed the benchmark indices with S&P BSE Midcap gaining over 1% and S&P BSE Smallcap up 0.6%.

Markets are also keeping an eye on corporate earnings including from TCS on Thursday and Infosys on Friday, kicking off the earnings season for the June quarter.

"Nifty traded range bound but finally settled with decent gains, thanks to buying in select index majors. It opened with an uptick and remained range bound thereafter, indicating caution ahead of the macroeconomic data viz. IIP and CPI inflation. However, there was no shortage of trading opportunities on stock specific front and participants remained busy till the end," said Jayant Manglik, President, Retail Distribution, Religare Securities.

Adding: "Markets will react to the macroeconomic data in early trade tomorrow and then focus would return to the TCS's result. We reiterate our bullish view on markets and suggest maintaining buy on dips approach. Also, be selective now and prefer hedged positions."

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stock markets continue trading subdued in afternoon trade ahead of June CPI data

STOCK MARKET NEWS - Benchmark indices continued trading subdued but in green in the afternoon trade with Nifty above the 9,800-mark ahead of June CPI data, to be announce later in the day. Investors expected the inflation to be at record low, which will put pressure on RBI to cut rates in the coming monetary policy review meet.

Asian Markets were also trading mixed amind political controvery surrounding Donald Trump after  emails disclosed by President Donald Trump's eldest son cited Russian support for his father's 2016 election campaign. Street also watched out for US Fed Chair Janet Yellen's testimoney to get clues on timeline of further rate hikes by Fed.

At 2:12 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,789, up 42 points while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,809 up 23 points

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and S&P BSE Smallcap index rose 0.4% each.

"The overall trend is still positive in the short term wherein 9,900 levels is an immediate target in the short term whereas above 10,000 levels in the medium term. On the lower side, 9,740 is an immediate support and below that 9,710. The momentum indicator MACD is well in the buy mode on the daily charts which is very supportive and bullish in the short term," said Anand Rathi Technicals in a note.

ONGC, HUL, Tata Motors and RIL contributed the most to BSE Sensex while TCS, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Bank and HeroMoto Corp shed the most on the index.

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Sensex flat, Nifty hovers around 9,800 in noon deals; ONGC, HUL top gainers

STOCK MARKET NEWS - Benchmark indices pared some morning gains to trade flat in the noon deals with Nifty trading hovering around 9,800 ahead of June CPI data, to be announce later in the day. Investors expected the inflation to be at record low, which will put pressure on RBI to cut rates in the coming monetary policy review meet.

Asian Markets were also trading mixed amind political controvery surrounding Donald Trump after  emails disclosed by President Donald Trump's eldest son cited Russian support for his father's 2016 election campaign. Street also watched out for US Fed Chair Janet Yellen's testimoney to get clues on timeline of further rate hikes by Fed.

At 11:40 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,768, up 21 points while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,800 up 14 points

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and S&P BSE Smallcap index rose 0.4% each.

"The overall trend is still positive in the short term wherein 9,900 levels is an immediate target in the short term whereas above 10,000 levels in the medium term. On the lower side, 9,740 is an immediate support and below that 9,710. The momentum indicator MACD is well in the buy mode on the daily charts which is very supportive and bullish in the short term," said Anand Rathi Technicals in a note.

ONGC, HUL, Tata Motors and RIL contributed the most to BSE Sensex while TCS, Bajaj Auto, HDFC Bank and HeroMoto Corp shed the most on the index.

Religare Enterprises extended yesterday's losses, down over 5% after ending in the 20% lower circuit on Tuesday amid speculation that lenders had sold some shares, pledged by the company’s promoters, in the open market. 

Markets continue trading near all-time highs; Nifty comfortably above 9,800

LATEST MARKET NEWS - Frontline indices extended gains to trade near all time highs in the noon trade on positive cues from the global markets.Gains were however capped as investors remianed cautious as they waited for Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen;s testimony for clues on when the central bank would tighten the US monetary policy.

Sensex rose as much as 131 points to hit the record high of 31,847, surpassing its previous milestone of 31768.39 hit yesterday while Nifty gained as much as 47 points to hit 9,818, surpassing the last high of 9,772 hit yesterday.

At 12:08 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,844, up 128 points while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,818 up 47 points

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap was little changed while S&P BSE Smallcap index rose 0.4%.

"Low volumes were instrumental in yesterday’s rise. However, the vertical rise is instructive, and suggestive towards potential for similar such sharp moves. Meanwhile pull back below 9,720 sharply reduce the upside prospects," said Geojit Financial Services in a note.

Buzzing Stocks

Infosys, TCS, Tata Motors, M&M and HUL contributed the most on BSE Sensex while Cipla, Bharti Airtel, ONGC, ITC and Dr Reddy's shed the most on the index.

State Bank of India gained 1% after said its central board approved dilution of its stake in its life insurance arm through an initial public offer for which it has already secured the sectoral regulatory approval.

Sensex hits new high, crosses 31,600; NSE above 9,700 after trading resumes

MARKET NEWS - Sensex continued trading higher in the noon deals, after both Sensex and NIfty hit their all-time high at open tracking global markets after a higher Wall Street  on Friday. On the other hand, NSE resumed trading in cash and F&O segment after the exchange shut for over 2 hours post a technical glich in the early morning deals. It shut down trading in the futures & options (F&O) segment at 9:55am.

In the early-morning trade, Sensex rose as much as 279 point to hit the record high of 31,639, surpassing its previous milestone of 31,522 hit on June 22 while Nifty gained as much as 100 points to hit 9756, surpassing the last high of 9,709 hit on June 6

At 12:34 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,531601, up 241 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,728, up 62 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap were in line with the frontline indices up 0.3% and 0.6% respectively.

Downsides are likely to be limited, but the disinclination to register much gains past 9,700 last week is suggestive that traders are looking for cheaper levels, and are not keen on chasing prices higher. To this end, a turn lower may be expected on first play around 9,700 but the ability to swing back would be retained as long as 9,580 is not broken. Further, direct rise above 9,700 is less expected spark short covering," said Geojit Financial Services in a note.

These seven smallcap stocks rally over 50% in one month; Venkys zooms 80%

MARKET NEWS - Venky’s (India), HEG, Graphite India, Bhansali Engineering Polymers, Jaiprakash Associates, B L Kashyap and Sons and Rai Saheb Rekhchand Mohota Spinning & Weaving Mills are among seven stocks from the S&P BSE Smallcap index, which rallied by over 50% in the past one month.

The S&P BSE Smallcap index was up 1.9% as compared to a marginal 0.2% decline in the S&P BSE Sensex.

Venky’s (India) hit new high of Rs 2,248, up 8%, extending its four-session long rally of 47%. The stock of poultry firm has zoomed 80% in past one month from Rs 1,245 on June 5, 2017.

Analyst at Kotak Securities, project 42% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in earnings through FY17-FY19 for Venky’s (India) and expect significantly improved return ratios and reduction in debt, going forward, which builds a case for greater investor attention/ re-rating.

“Since FY15/16, measures taken by the industry to correct the supply-demand mismatch in poultry have begun to impact chicken prices positively. In addition, the company also stands to gain from external factors - such as restrictions on cow slaughter and decline in raw material prices (soya prices down 30% y/y as of May, corn prices down 10%),” the broking firm said in recent report.

Near-term (FY18) earnings visibility is high, especially following sharp rise in poultry prices already witnessed in 1QFY18, added report.

Graphite India and HEG, engaged in graphite electrode business, have rallied 66% and 54%, respectively, in past one month.

India Ratings & Research (Ind-Ra) affirmed the credit rating of HEG as IND A' with stable outlook.

“With the tightness on the supply side, given the change in the industry structure and demand remaining healthy, the demand supply balance has shifted in the favour of the suppliers. This has resulted in a significant increase in graphite electrode prices to nearly USD 4,000/t from USD 2,000/t in the spot market,” Ind-Ra said in a press release.

Markets trade flat with positive bias; Nifty holds on to 9,600

MARKET NEWS - The benchmark indices continued to trade flat with positive bias after Asian markets inched back into the black as investors wagered the latest flare-up of tensions on the Korean peninsula would fade away like so many others.

At 2:28 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,223, up 13 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,627, up 14 points. 

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices outperformed to gain nearly 1% each. 

The breadth, indicating strength of the market was strong. On BSE, 1,509 shares rose and 878 shares fell. A total of 122 shares were unchanged.

Tata Motors rose over 1% after the company said that it has slashed prices of passenger vehicles post GST, passing benefits of GST to its customers. 

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose over 2% after the company announced revised prices of its vehicles pursuant to the implementation of Goods & Services Tax (GST), with immediate effect.

ABC Bearings was locked in upper circuit for the second straight day, up 20% at Rs 286 on BSE, after the company said that the board has approved the merger with Timken India.

The stock, trading at its record high level, has zoomed 62% in the past three trading sessions from Rs 177 on June 30, 2017.

Shares of Texmaco Rail & Engineering advanced as much as 12% after Adventz Group on Tuesday said it has signed a $2 billion-plus agreement with Israel’s Lesico group to collaborate in light rail transit (LRT) projects in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. 

On macroeconomic data front, buoyed by sustained growth in new work, the services sector continued to boom ahead in June, growing at an eight-month high pace, the widely tracked Nikkei India Services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) showed.

The PMI for the dominating sector of the Indian economy stood at 53.1, higher than the 52.2 registered in May - back then a seven-month high.

Markets trade volatile, Nifty holds above 9,600 in afternoon trade

MARKET NEWS - In a volatile trading session, the benchmark indices were trading in green in the afternoon trade on Tuesday even as Asian and European markets slipped after North Korea test-launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile days before leaders from the Group of 20 nations are due to discuss steps to rein in Pyongyang's weapons programmes.

At 2:14 am, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,300, up 79 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,644, up 29 points.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Midcap index slipped 0.3%, while the S&P BSE Smallcap index turned flat.

The breadth, indicating overall health of the market was positive. On BSE, 1,130 shares rose and 1,062 shares fell. A total of 120 shares were unchanged.

Hero MotoCorp (down 2%) was the leading loser on Sensex. The company on Monday announced that it is passing on the benefit of GST to its customers with a reduction in the prices of models across its product portfolio in most of the states w.e.f. July 1.

Just Dial tanked over 4% to Rs 365 after the company’s chief financial officer and key managerial personnel Ramkumar Krishnamachari submitted his resignation on Monday from his post.

Reliance Industries was the top gainer and added over 2% to Rs 1,412.

ONGC gained over 1% after ONGC Videsh, the overseas arm of the company said it has acquired 30% interest in an oil block, off Namibia, from UK's Tullow Oil. OVL did not disclose the deal value.

Meanwhile, Australia's central bank left interest rates unchanged on Tuesday and stuck to a neutral tone on policy despite recent signs of improvement in the economy and a swing toward more hawkish guidance among its global counterparts.

Asian markets declined after North Korea launched a ballistic missile into the waters between Korea and Japan Tuesday morning — its first such launch in more than a month — which comes on the eve of Independence Day in the US.

UK Elections 2017 end in hung parliament, but Indian markets will weather the storm

MARKET NEWS - Indian markets edged lower on Friday, in line with their Asian peers as the polls in the United Kingdom (UK) hinted a loss for the British Prime Minister Theresa May's ruling Conservative party that could result in a hung Parliament and delay Brexit talks.

Asian markets were trading mixed on Friday, with Nikkei, Straits Times and KOSPI marginally in the green, while Hang Seng, Taiwan Weighted and Jakarta Composite slipped 0.1% - 0.3% in intra-day deals. Back home, the S&P BSE Sensex and the Nifty50 indices were trading around 0.2% lower each at 31,153 and 9,618 levels, respectively.

Going ahead, the reaction by financial markets will be seen as an important gauge of how investors look at the United Kingdom’s prospects, the impact on Indian markets, however, is likely to be limited.

Though the fall seen on Friday was warranted given the global linkages, analysts say, Indian markets are expected to perform better than most other emerging and developed markets over the long run. On the contrary, the UK poll outcome that could delay Brexit talks could work in favour of global financial markets, including India.

“Brexit is a fact and the new government will have to negotiate accordingly. However, I expect these negotiations to be weaker in case May loses the election. The markets were never in favour of Brexit and to that extent, incrementally weaker Brexit negotiations and a possible delay will be appreciated by the markets. The Indian markets will weather this storm as there is not much at stake as far as India is concerned. As best, trade negotiations with the UK will have to be reworked,” explains U R Bhat, managing director, Dalton Capital Advisors.

The Indian economy with a stable macro environment and government pushing through reforms, favourable monsoon forecasts and with a banking sector undergoing an overhaul, Indian markets have enough buffers to withstand the poll outcome in the short-term, analysts say. They expect the impact to be transitory in nature with the markets likely to recover soon from any knee-jerk reaction.
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Sensex slips in red, Nifty tests 9,650; broader markets outperform

LATEST MARKET NEWS - The benchmark indices pared entire initial gains to slip in red as investors braced for any surprises from former FBI director James Comey's congressional appearance, the European Central Bank's policy meeting and the UK general elections.

At 12:16 pm, the S&P BSE Sensex was trading at 31,236, down 34 points, while the broader Nifty50 was ruling at 9,653, down 10 points.

The broader market outperformed with the S&P BSE Midcap and the S&P BSE Smallcap indices adding 0.2% each.

"Opening moves could possibly aim for the 9727-50 but there are not enough signs that the next push higher could unfold right away. Such constructs puts 9,640 in focus, until above which the near term uptrend prospects will be intact. Direct fall below may not unsettle the overall uptrend prospects though, but break of 9530-9500 might do that. That, though is less expected now," said brokerage Geojit Financial Services in a technical note.

Buzzing stocks

Tata Steel (up 3.6%), Dr Reddy's (up 2%) and HDFC (up 2%) were the leading gainers on the Sensex, while TCS (2.3%), Adani Ports (1.8%) and GAIL (1.7%) shed the most.

Petronet LNG slipped 3% to Rs 421 after GDF International said will sell its entire 10% stake in Petronet LNG in block trades on Thursday for up to $512 million.

UK goes to voting today

The British will vote today in a 'snap election' that Prime Minister Theresa May had called seven weeks ago. Polls had initially suggested a landslide win for her Conservative party, but now are suggesting a narrowing lead for May, with some pointing to the chance that the Tories may not win an outright majority. This will impact the negotiations on Britain leaving the European Union.

ECB to stick to stimulus

The European Central Bank is likely to stick to its aggressive stimulus policy at its meeting later today because inflation remains below its target, despite brisker economic growth in the euro zone.

The ECB is now forecasting inflation at 1.7 percent and growth at 1.8 percent this year. Its mandate is to keep inflation close to but below 2 percent, but inflation slowed to 1.4 percent in May.

Global markets

Asian shares wobbled in early Thursday trade. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.27% while Japan's Nikkei rose 0.3% thanks to the dollar's rebound against the yen.

Wall Street shares ticked up on Wednesday, despite sharp decline in energy prices, after written testimony from former FBI director James Comey did not add major revelations about an investigation into Russian meddling with last year's US presidential election.