Cues that will impact Indian market today

Moneycontrol Bureau:
The US markets recovered from their day's lows to close higher with more than 1% gains after FED Chairman Ben Bernanke said that the FED may look to reinvest in mortgage backed securities to provide additional support to the weak housing market.
Stocks shaved their gains earlier after the FED slashed its growth forecasts and following a report that said the sixth tranche of loans to Greece may not be paid until after Greek referendum is held.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.53%, the S&P 500 index gained 1.61%, while the Nasdaq 100 index climbed 0.87%.
FED statement:
The FED leaves interest rates unchanged and announces that they are holding off on any new actions to aid the economy, but left open the possibility of taking further steps in the near future.
In addition, the FED cut its growth forecast to between 1.6 and 1.7% for 2011.
US economic data:
US private-sector employers added 110,000 jobs in October. Weekly mortgage applications rose last week,  as demand for both purchases and refinancing gained.
Data to watch out for:
Jobless claims for the week is expected to come out today. Consensus figures indicate a decline from 402,000 to 400,000.
Factory orders for September is expected to remain the same month on month.
Meanwhile, the ISM Manufacturing data for October is expected to indicate an uptick to 53.5 from 53.
Also productivity and costs data for the third quarter is expected to come out today. NPN Farm Productivity is expected to improve.
European markets:
European markets closed higher as the FED leaves the rates unchanged.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy says that the referendum must be a decision on whether or not Greece stays in the Euro.
The European Union in the meantime appears to be preparing for the worst, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that the group will meet on Monday to discuss firewall options.
Meanwhile, European Union and the International Monetary Fund said they will consider the sixth tranche of Greece's loan after a Greek referendum on a new bailout plan.
Asian markets:
At 8:03 hours IST, Asian markets were trading lower after the sixth tranche of loans to Greece worth USD 178 billion was put on hold till early December referendum.
Hang Seng fell 432.25 points or 2.19% to 19,301.46 and Jakarta Composite declined 59.87 points or 1.59% to 3,703.17.
Straits Times slipped 39.85 points or 1.41% to 2,794.90 and Seoul Composite was trading at 1,873.22, down 24.79 points or 1.31%. Japanese stock market is shut today for public holiday.
Currency check:
Euro maintains its losses versus the dollar at 1.36 to the dollar. Meanwhile, dollar index hold steady above 77.
Commodities market:
Brent crude hovers around USD 109 per barrel levels while gold is at USD 1,730 an ounce in trade.
Local market:
Yesterday, the Indian markets displayed some resilience. The Nifty recovered from a weak start to close flat. The Sensex ended just 15 points in the red.
Stock specific action:
Diesel, LPG prices are set to rise again, EGOM will decide later this month.
AV Birla group weighs USD 5 billion bid for Australia's New Hope. The move may pit company against JSW Steel .
SAIL , POSCO have settled differences over Bokaro plant.
Steel companies are unlikely to hike prices this month.
GAIL will invest USD 1 billion in Shale Gas.
Power Grid is eyeing firms in South America.
Results today:
SAIL , Ashok Leyland , TVS Motor , Sun TV , Tata Teleservices Maharashtra , Jubilant Foodworks , Welspun Corp , and Prestige Estates will declare their results today.

Source : http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/market-edge/check-out-cues-that-will-impact-indian-market-today_610330.html

Asian shares head higher despite weak Wall Street

Source : Economicstimes
TOKYO: Asian stock markets rose Wednesday, reversing course after an indecisive opening following a sluggish day on Wall Street .

Oil prices rose to near $85 a barrel Wednesday in Asia after a report showed U.S. crude supplies unexpectedly fell last week, suggesting demand may be improving.

The Nikkei 225 stock average in Tokyo added 0.4 percent to 10,788.13. Exporters, including electronics makers, generally rose as the dollar hovered in the upper 83-yen range. Toshiba Corp. was up 2.8 percent, Pioneer Corp. rose 2.6 percent, and Sharp Corp. rose 0.9 percent. Financial issues also advanced, with Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. up 2.3 percent.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index rose 0.4 percent to 22,996.87, and the Shanghai Composite index was up 0.1 percent to 2,902.59. South Korea's Kospi index was nearly flat at 2,011.36, while benchmarks in Singapore and Indonesia retreated.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up narrowly to 4,932.60. Among the day's worst performers, BHP Billiton Ltd. shed 1.8 percent despite reporting robust earnings. The world's biggest mining company said its first half net profit soared more than 71 percent in the six months through December.

In New York Tuesday, a surprisingly weak retail sales report drove stocks lower on Tuesday, giving the Dow Jones industrial average its second straight day of losses.

The Dow fell 41.55, or 0.3 percent, to close at 12,226.64. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 4.31, or 0.3 percent, to 1,328.01. The Nasdaq composite index fell 12.83, or 0.5 percent, to 2,804.35.

In currencies, the dollar eased to 83.75 yen from 83.82 yen late Tuesday. The dollar rose from the lower-83 yen level overnight, at one point hitting a two-month high of 83.91 yen. The euro stood at $1.3532 from $1.3492.

Benchmark crude oil for March delivery was up 35 cents at $84.67 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 49 cents to settle at $84.32 a barrel Tuesday.