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Informist, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026                                      Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

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Equity Alert: Indices in Asia higher; Japan's Nikkei biggest gainer

 

MUMBAI--0845 IST--Indices in Asia were higher Friday, with Japan's Nikkei 225 Day trading up 1% to be the biggest gainer. The CSI 300 index was up 0.5?spite China's annual consumer price inflation rising to a 34-month high in December. The full-year rate, however, fell to its lowest in 16 years. 

 

China's December CPI rose 0.8% on year in December, in line with expectations of a Reuters poll. Even though it reached a 34-month-high, its full-year rate fell to its lowest in 16 years while producer deflation continued, which indicates persistent softness in demand, Reuters said.

 

Shares of Japan-based Fast Retailing Co. rose nearly 9% during the session. This rise came after the company that operates Uniqlo reported that its operating profit rose one-third, and it raised its full-year forecast, a report from CNBC said. Strong global sales helped offset the US tariffs, with the company on track for its fifth consecutive year of profit growth due to stronger sales in China and expansion in North America and Europe, the company said, according to CNBC. 

 

Shares of Rio Tinto fell nearly 6% on the Australian S&P/ASX 200 Index. This came after the company said it has entered into early-stage buyout talks with Glencore, to create a mining giant valued at nearly $207 billion, CNBC reported. Defence stocks in the region rose with investors monitoring the US-Venezuelan conflict and the US President Donal Trump's push to acquire Greenland, CNBC said. In Japan, shares of Kawasaki Heavy Industries and IHI Corp rose over 2%. In South Korea, shares of Korea Aerospace Industries and Poongsan Corp. rose nearly 5% and 6%, respectively and those of Hanwha Aerospace Co rose nearly 8%. Investors will keep an eye on Hang Seng Bank after majority owner HSBC approved a plan to take the lender private, CNBC reported. 

 

 

Following are the levels of key Asian indices at 0816 IST:

 

INDEX	LEVEL	CHANGE IN %
CSI 300 Index	4762.5524	0.53
Hang Seng Index	26203.75	0.21
KOSPI	4565.27	0.28
Nikkei 225 Day	51643.69	1.03
TOPIX FIRST SECTION	3509.80	0.73
FTSE Singapore Straits Times	4736.55	(-)0.05
S&P/ASX 200 Index	8734.7	0.16

 

(Akshat Saksena)

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Equity Alert: Indices may open tad up, seen in range Fri amid tariff concerns

 

MUMBAI--0833 IST--Benchmark equity indices may open marginally higher, taking positive cues from Asian markets. They are seen in a range on Friday, after falling sharply Thursday. The Nifty 50 index fell 1% Thursday after US President Donald Trump supported a bill that may give powers to impose tariffs of up to 500% on countries buying Russian oil, including India and China. The market may react to a hearing on the legality of these tariffs in the US Supreme Court Friday, according to media reports.

 

At 0830 IST, the GIFT Nifty's January contract was at 26001.50 points, over 124 points higher than the Nifty 50's close of 25876.85 points on Thursday. The Nifty 50 will face resistance at 26000 points and find support at 25700-25500 points, Sundar Kewat, technical and derivatives analyst at Ashika Group, said. On Thursday, the BSE Sensex closed at 84180.96 points, down 780.18 points or 0.9%.

 

Some analysts expect the market to be volatile owing to geopolitical uncertainty and tariff tensions. On Thursday, India VIX, the market's fear gauge, closed 6.5% higher at 10.60. "Overall, the setup looks uncomfortable for the bulls," Rupak De, senior technical analyst at LKP Securities, said in a note. "Selling pressure is likely to persist in the near term unless the Nifty (50) moves back above 26,000," he said.

 

US indices ended mixed, with the S&P 500 closing flat Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session 0.6% higher while the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.4%. According to a Reuters report, Nvidia and other technology stocks dipped, weighing on the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite, while defence companies advanced after Trump called for a $1.5 trillion military budget. Most of the Asian indices were higher in early trade Friday, with the FTSE Singapore Straits Times being the sole loser.  (Arundathi A R)

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Equity Alert: S&P, Dow Jones end higher Thu, defence stocks rise

 

MUMBAI--0750 IST--Most benchmark equity indices in the US ended higher on Thursday, barring the tech-laden Nasdaq Composite. Shares of information technology companies fell while those of defence companies rose during the session.

 

Shares of artificial intelligence company NVIDIA Corp. fell more than 2% during the session, and shares of Oracle were down nearly 2% as well. Shares of Apple Inc. recorded losses for seven sessions, according to a report by CNBC. Shares of Apple fell 0.5% during the session. Defence stocks rose after US President Donald Trump proposed a defence budget of $1.5 trillion for 2027, a substantial increase from the budget of $901 billion approved by Congress for 2026, CNBC said. Shares of Northrop Grumman gained over 2% and those of Lockheed Martin rose over 4%. Shares of Kratos Defense & Security Solutions jumped nearly 14% and those of RTX Corp. rose nearly 1%, according to CNBC.

 

Technology and AI stocks will remain an important theme in 2026, with the status of trade to remain a key upside driver, which will be dependent on whether use cases start to rise and the sectors in which they do, Rob Haworth, senior investment strategy director at US Bank Asset Management said, according to CNBC. "We're seeing early signs of that in health care," he said. "When we think about robotics, insurance, diagnostics, all these types of companies are going to be early beneficiaries. That's where we think the growth story is," Haworth was quoted as saying by CNBC. 

 

Worker productivity grew at its fastest pace in two years in the December quarter, according to data from the Labour Department, Reuters said in a report. The number of people applying for unemployment benefits rose moderately due to a low number of layoffs even though demand for labour remained slow, Reuters said. 

 

US data for employment in December will be key, Reuters said. Investors are pricing in two rate cuts in 2026 even though the US central bank indicated only one cut in 2026 in December. The Federal Reserve Bank is expected to keep rates steady at its meeting this month, according to Reuters. 

 

Following are the closing levels of US indices Thursday:  

 

Index	Level	Change in %
S&P 500	6921.46	0.01
NASDAQ Composite	23480.016	(-)0.44
Dow Jones Industrial Average	49266.11	0.55

 

(Akshat Saksena)

 

US$1 = INR 90.02

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Vandana Hingorani

 

All prices from National Stock Exchange, unless otherwise specified.

All percentage changes for share prices are rounded off to the nearest whole number; percentage changes for index values are rounded off to one decimal place.

All times are Indian Standard Time.

 

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